Uri Party Members Blast President Roh

Ruling Uri Party lawmakers criticized President Roh Moo-hyun and his administration yesterday during the interpellation session on politics at the National Assembly.

Ruling party members have denounced President Roh from time to time in party meetings or gatherings, but they have effectively regarded it as taboo to criticize the president on occasions like the National Assembly interpellation session which is aired live on TV, or at a gathering of lawmakers containing both ruling and opposition party representatives.

“The public expects a mature government and a tolerant ruling party. The public does not want them to be activists who challenge the power and engage in ideological disputes,” said lawmaker Kim Bu-kyeom, a standing member of the Uri Party’s Emergency Response Committee. He criticized the government and the ruling Uri Party, saying, “The current real estate policy, excessive spending on private education, youth unemployment, and employment instability issues are proof of the incumbent administration’s policy immaturity.”

Kim demanded that President Roh form a government based on national neutrality. He urged the president to act with determination, saying, “More than anything else, the president needs to think hard and show resolve.”

“I am confident that it all originated from the sincerity of a ‘foolish Roh Moo-hyun,” said Kim. “Only when the president frees himself from political disputes will the sincerity of the current administration bear fruit.”

Lawmaker Choi Kyu-sik of the ruling party also noted that the approval rating for the performance by President Roh remained at 10 percent and said, “In my view, the president is at fault for the chaos and the incompetence of the current administration.”

Choi went on to say, “We should make sure that politics serves as a stepping stone for, not a roadblock to, economic, diplomatic, or security issues that are directly linked to the future of the nation.” He added, “To that end, we should see to it that the president focuses on state affairs like diplomacy, security, and economy rather than on politics so that he is not involved in political disputes.”

Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook struggled to answer aggressive questions from ruling party members, noting, “In fact, the president spends most of his time taking care of real estate issues, the livelihood of the public, and the North Korean nuclear problem,” or “the government is responsible for the issues.”

Some observe that the change in the attitude of ruling party members toward President Roh and his administration reflects lawmakers’ attempts to distance themselves from the president in the run-up to the next presidential election. They used to protect the president from criticism by opposition party members in the past.

During the interpellation session of the National Assembly in February 2005, lawmaker Lee Hwa-young of the Uri Party even called on the prime minister to faithfully implement government reform measures, saying, “They say President Roh always thinks about reforms.”

After President Roh remarked on July 8, 2004, “I consider the opposition against the new administrative capital plan as a no-confidence campaign against the president,” Uri Party lawmakers busied themselves with stressing the need for a new administrative capital during the National Assembly’s interpellation session the following day.

“The opposition Grand National Party (GNP) is overreacting to the president’s remarks, but he just meant to show his commitment to his plans,” said lawmaker Lee Gang-rae. “The biggest problem in Korean political culture is ‘disobedience.’ The GNP must abandon its duplicity.”

leon@donga.com