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Time for selection and concentration

Published: 03 Dec. 2024, 19:43

Koh Hyun-kohn
The author is the executive editor of the JoongAng Ilbo.

It is rare that the ruling and opposition parties are both in such a state of disarray as they are now. In the ruling party, the conflict between President Yoon Suk Yeol and People Power Party (PPP) leader Han Dong-hoon is getting out of hand. Judging from the pro-Yoon and pro-Han clashes on the party website’s opinion boards, the situation seems extremely serious. A month has passed since Yoon said, “I apologize, anyway,” but nothing has changed.

There are only talks about how to resolve the issue of first lady Kim Keon Hee and the appointment crisis of the Yoon administration. It is a tragic comedy that the public concern is whether Kim will accompany Yoon on his overseas trips or not. Meanwhile, Han is obsessed with bickering. Both Yoon and Han are new to politics and weak to embrace people generously.

Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), is currently standing five trials. Of the 15 cases that are destined to reach the Supreme Court, only two were ruled at the district court. DP lawmakers are busy lining up in front of the court to prove their loyalty to Lee. They only serve Lee, not the people. The dignity of liberal politicians, who stood in the wilderness risking their lives in the harsh times of authoritarian rule, is nowhere to be found.

While the foolish conservative and liberal politicians are distracted, the situation at home and abroad became dire. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump calls Korea a rich country, but in reality, the Korean economy is suffering from a chronic illness after losing its iconic dynamism. The Bank of Korea has predicted low growth in the 1 percent range from next year. As an economic crisis is looming, companies are selling off their businesses and assets to raise cash. Only a few of the 10 largest conglomerates are in good shape while small- and medium-sized businesses are struggling to survive. Among the self-employed, 1.78 million are multi-debtors with three or more loans. There is 13 trillion won ($9 billion) in delinquencies.

Stock prices are going downhill. Ignoring global standards, the government has given investors everything they want, but nothing works when companies’ intrinsic values are bad. Meanwhile, the government’s economic team is saying the economy is still vibrant.

Considering the political calendar of local elections in June 2026 and a presidential election in March 2027, Yoon has just over a year until early 2026 to actually get things done. He urged his team to deliver results, stressing that the four major reforms in labor, education, pension and medical sectors are urgent tasks. He recently added a new task of resolving polarization. His promise to tackle difficult tasks at once feels empty. The biggest problem is that no one will listen to the words of a president whose approval rating is only 20 percent.

If Yoon were benchmarking the Lee Myung-bak administration, he made a mistake. In 2008, Lee’s approval rating plummeted to the 10 percent range due to fierce public protests against his decision to resume U.S. beef imports despite mad cow disease and appointments of rich high-ranking officials. In his second year, Lee shifted his government to implement policies that are centrist, pragmatic and friendly to ordinary citizens. Shared growth and mutual prosperity became the new keywords of Lee’s administration. That boosted his approval rating to the 50 percent range.

At the time, Lee was hit by fake news about mad cow disease. However, as the fall took place at the early months of his term, Lee had the strength to rebound. But the situation is different now. The chaos was caused not by fake news but by Yoon’s confidantes. The momentum to push forward any policies is weak because Yoon is in the second half of his presidency.

The president will be lucky if he can succeed in one or two things. We only remember one or two achievements of previous presidents. President Roh Tae-woo is remembered for his northern diplomacy, while President Kim Young-sam is recalled for introducing the real name financial transaction system to heighten transparency and cracking down on the Hanahoe military fraternity. President Kim Dae-jung’s accomplishment was overcoming the foreign currency crisis and President Roh Moo-hyun’s was signing the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement.

President Lee Myung-bak was praised for overcoming the global financial crisis while President Park Geun-hye’s achievement was reforming public servants’ pension. Nothing comes to mind for President Moon Jae-in.

Reversing the declining birthrate and reducing polarization are not problems that can be resolved by suddenly pressing public servants. They can only be solved when the entire social system, including labor, education, pensions, finance and real estate market, enters a virtuous cycle.

The public healthcare crisis is not a reform issue but an issue of how the Yoon government will resolve the conflict surrounding his decision to increase the medical school admission quota by 2,000.

The best Yoon can do now is to bring about a compromise in the national pension reform so that subscribers will pay more but receive less and changing the 52-hour workweek system, which has many ill side effects. It is time to choose and focus.

Translation by the Korea JoongAng Daily staff.