Capability, not loyalty, matters the most

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s approval rating dipped to 34 percent, according to Realmeter’s poll results from Oct. 10 to 13. It is the first time the rating fell below 35 percent in five months. The rating for the ruling party is more pitiful. The main opposition Democratic Party (DP)’s rating hovered above 50 percent, while that of the People Power Party (PPP) stopped at 32 percent. The results may reflect the cold public sentiment after the ruling party replaced a few leaders despite the crushing defeat in the by-election in Gangseo district in Seoul.

The latest defeat was a sober warning ahead of the parliamentary election in April next year. Instead of soul-searching, the PPP spent the aftermath blaming one another. The key posts — chief, floor leader, and secretary general — all represent the constituencies of the North and South Gyeongsang region that’s traditionally a conservative base. The leadership folded the plan of seating a pro-president policy chief as the secretary general in the face of negative public opinion. Most of the members also failed to realize the severity of the situation. During a party assembly last Sunday, only seven out of 23 who spoke out emphasized the danger the party was in. Only three spoke critically of the outsized role of the presidential office. Non-mainstream member Her Euna warned the party was in as “sad a sight” as the DP. “We should all go to [the presidential office] to plea with the axe [as in the old days when scholars knelt before the monarch with the determination to kill themselves if the king refuses to listen to their appeals].”

If the ruling party keeps to the makeshift measures, it is inviting disastrous results in the upcoming parliamentary election. That would destabilize the Yoon government despite having more than half of the five-year term left. The drive to reform the pension, labor, and education systems would lose steam.

The key lies with PPP head Kim Gi-hyeon. He should take responsibility for the humiliating election defeat, but he vowed to do his upmost to win the general election with the determination to retire from politics if his party loses. Does he think the people would really care whether he retires from politics or not? How can a person who is solely preoccupied with pleasing the president, with little sensitivity towards the people and low confidence from party members, be capable of steering a party in tatters?

The PPP candidate lost the latest election due to the loss of young, centrist voters. To win them back, Yoon must change first. He ordered the presidential office to communicate more closely with the party. But the advice should go to him first. The presidential office and cabinet members who have lost faith with the people must be replaced with those who are capable and flexible and can talk honestly. Members should be able to act more freely instead of fearing losing favor of the president. What’s worse than a defeat is a feigned gesture to change.