No power can defeat public sentiment

Lee Ha-kyung
The author is a senior columnist of the JoongAng Ilbo.

If a strong person is intoxicated by power, they can lose good judgement. President Yoon Suk Yeol vetoed a special bill to appoint an independent counsel to investigate the alleged stock price manipulation by his wife Kim Keon Hee. His decision defies more than 60 percent of the public who want a special probe for the issue.

President Yoon Suk Yeol returns home with first lady Kim Keon-hee after his three-day state visit to the Netherlands, on Dec. 15.

The presidential office criticized the bill as “trying to manipulate public opinion” ahead of the April 10 parliamentary elections. It has a point. But the presidential office nevertheless ignores the public displeasure over the scandals related to the first lady. Korean presidents have never exercised their veto power to protect their family. The opposition’s strong condemnation of Yoon for stretching his power beyond the constitutional boundary sounds quite reasonable.

Former President Kim Young-sam fell from grace due to his son Hyun-chul. The junior who contributed to his father’s presidential victory enjoyed enormous power by planting his own connections in the Agency for National Security Planning and the presidential office. President Kim’s chief of staff Park Kwan-yong did receive a blow after directly reporting the junior’s deeds to the president. The younger Kim’s closest confidant was Kim Ki-sup, an official at the spy agency.

Lho Shin-yong, a former prime minister under President Kim, shared his view on the scandal related to Kim Ki-sup and Kim Hyun-chul in 1997. “The Agency for National Security Planning [today’s National Intelligence Service] produces thousands of intelligence and information a day. Of them, just about five are reported to the agency head. While serving as the director for 32 months, I only reported to one person — the president. They contained information I must take to my grave. Kim Ki-sup shared sensitive information with the president’s son who has no authority. The two clearly abused their power.”

Kim Hyun-chul was investigated by the prosecution over his direct involvement in the bribery scandal related to now-defunct Hanbo Group. But Kim was found innocent and released by the prosecution. But the leadership of the ruling party and prosecution was embarrassed after receiving a report that Seoul National University professors were planning a street protest in the scale of the April 19 Revolution against the dictatorship of Syngman Rhee in 1960. The prosecution reopened the case and accused Kim of the novel charge of tax evasion to ease the deepening public rage.

Before being summoned to the prosecution for the second questioning, Kim called his father to tell him not to worry, saying he would stop by after two days of questioning. The president, already sensing enormous repercussions, said he could not be of any help in the twilight of his reign. Kim Jr. was arrested on May 17, 1997 — the first for a son of a president. Shin Sang-woo, the minister of oceans and fisheries at the time, found the president absentminded after his son’s arrest. In the latter half of the year, the country underwent a near-default crisis and had to file for an international bailout at the year’s end.

President Kim Dae-jung and his eldest son Hong-il were political allies. The younger Kim suffered from Parkinson’s disease due to complications related to the torture he received under the military regime. He could not speak or communicate fluently. But after his father was elected president, he gained power. Park Joo-sun, a presidential secretary for legal affairs, received a call from the president as he was on his way to announce the first Cabinet members. The president told him to do a favor for his son who became ill because of the torture he received on behalf of his father. One name on the list of new ministers was soon changed.

At the time, the secretary who supervised the presidential family and relatives was a 30-year friend of Kim Hong-il. The lax monitoring led to another tragedy. Kim was found guilty in the Supreme Court for taking a bribe and lost his legislative seat. President Kim’s two other sons were also arrested during his term. The prosecution could not make an exception in the face of public anger.

Seasoned politicians like Kim Young-sam and Kim Dae-jung both failed to contain their sons and shed tears of disgrace. President Yoon faced a harsh test even before his second year in office. But the earlier the better. If he humbles himself early on, he may still make amends during the remaining years in his term.

Yoon should have willingly invited the special counsel investigation to match his slogan of restoring fairness and common sense. The presidential office has decided to reopen the secretariat office to manage the first lady’s affairs. But that’s not enough.

The president must appoint a special inspector to thoroughly look into many allegations against his wife — luxury shopping during presidential state visits, reception of a luxury handbag in return for exercising influence in appointments, and her influence in changing the routes of the new Seoul-Yangpyeong expressway. If any wrongdoings are found, he must issue a public apology and comply with legal actions.

The president must not dismiss public sentiments or just feign to comply. Good and bad things are proven eventually. The president must be humble and respect the people’s wishes. Even the two former dissidents-turned-presidents fell from grace at the end. No power can defeat public sentiment.