How to tackle the challenges of the PPP

Former Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon on Tuesday took up his new role as chairman of the emergency committee of the governing People Power Party (PPP). Han, a former prosecutor and political novice, has entered the political theater as interim leader of the enervated party. Upon taking his new post, he emphasized the importance of “stopping a majority party — whose only goal is to let serious violations of the law go unpunished — from ruining the country.” His remarks target the privileges the former democracy fighters have been enjoying as lawmakers.

The straightforward former justice minister denounced the majority Democratic Party (DP) for methodically exploiting a group of avid followers of its leader Lee Jae-myung mired in many judicial risks. Han called them “a force representing blind totalitarianism.” At the same time, the ad hoc leader of the PPP declared he will not run in the April 10 parliamentary election, adding that he will only nominate party members pledging to give up lawmakers’ privilege of not being arrested while legislative sessions are underway. We hope Han serves as a catalyst to change the outdated political culture in Korea.

But the new leader has homework. Former PPP leader Lee Jun-seok, a provocative thirtysomething politician, plans to leave the party today. Though he has been criticized for fueling internal chaos with his signature rough comments about President Yoon Suk Yeol and the PPP, he can help expand the base for the conservative party. In politics, embracing opponents instead of battling against them is also a virtue.

Another challenge comes from the DP, which threatens to pass a motion on Thursday to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the alleged stock price manipulation by first lady Kim Keon Hee. President Yoon will most likely veto the motion to look into his wife’s possible wrongdoing. Asked about his position on the thorny issue, Han avoided answering the question directly. Nevertheless, more than 60 percent of the people do not want the president to veto the motion.

To make matters worse, citizens are taking an increasingly negative stance on the first lady’s alleged reception of a luxury handbag in return for favors in appointments. If the new PPP leader blindly opposes the appointment of a special counsel without establishing any mechanism to check the presidential family’s possible abuse of power, that will backfire.

The vertical relationship between the president and the PPP has been cited as a major reason for their stagnant approval ratings. In turn, Han said that the president and the government are separate entities doing their own job. “It is not about a vertical or horizontal relationship, but about a partnership,” he said. We wonder if Han really does not know the very reason for the decline in their approval rating.

Han must innovate the nomination system based on the Yeongnam region and attract reform-minded candidates for the election to the party instead of nominating candidates based on school or regional connections. A drastic departure from the decades-old practice will help the minority party become a majority in the National Assembly.