[Opinion] Long for Authoritarianism?

President Kim Dae-Jung resigned from the president of the Millennium Democratic Party (MDP). It would be more proper to say that he abandoned the position. Although the MDP became a child without father, some may say that condition for independence is finally set up. However, the way to independence seems still arduous because the MDP has to fill the emptiness where charisma no longer exists even after selecting the president of the party and the presidential candidates. I hoped that President Kim would not repeat the mistakes of the previous regimes. However, delayed reform politics, fractious reform group, and the internal feud and weakness of the ruling party illustrate that the current regime is not different from the previous regimes. On top of this, President Kim is taking the same course as the previous presidents who had given up the party presidency due to the problem of the accession of power. It is concerning as to whether retirement without any trouble is possible. It is the political reality in South Korea where `honorable retirement` is more difficult than taking power. All of sudden, it is even fearful imagining all the serious things people may need to witness for the next one year.

Democracy implanted by the two civil governments has `noisy`, `cumbersome`, and `whining` images. The images are far from the images that things are neatly dealt with and people fairly compete one another and resign. Thus, many people often long for authoritarianism. The more there are obstructions toward democracy, the more there grows longing for authoritarianism. Although this is an extremely dangerous phenomenon, this is also the political reality of South Korea.

It is the issue of the accession of power that taints democracy with the whining image. The internal feud of the ruling party is not really an urgent issue because it will take care of it self naturally by the forming of new party which will happen soon with the great justification. However, since the accession of power is an evil practice which will trouble the next regime, there should be a way to institutionalize this. Why is this issue so problematic? Three factors can explain this.

First, all the power is concentrated to President. This generates the imbalance of autonomous and reform politics. While the policy channel of the cabinet and the ruling party is not properly operated, power of the group surrounding President becomes enlarged. This is how responsibilities for the defeat in the election and the fall of the approval rating are laid to the group represented by the Dongkyo-dong line. The issue of accession of power cannot become transparent by driving out the Dongkyo-dong line.

Second, the centralization of power blocks the possibility of responsible politics through the decentralization of power, and deprives the successors of the opportunity to cultivate political ability. The more the centralization of power deprives successors of the opportunity, the more the successors pay attention to create words that will attract people`s interest and unnecessarily intervene the national affairs.

Third, successors are selected by the party`s delegate election. Although we do not know who the delegates are, for the successors they are more important than the national policies. The goal is to gain their support by using the personal network and connection to the full. It costs a lot to manage the faction and the supporters. Sometimes, there is political compromise. Political corruption begins with the management of faction, and the secretive promises, which need to be kept if one seizes the power, are developed to the chaotic personnel management. The same course is waiting for the next elected candidate. The five-year single term system for presidency renders the ruler to excessively make plans beyond one`s own ability. There is no time to bypass the trap of reform politics, that is, disparity of vision and ability. While exercising the power and shouting the reform politics, the ruler, without much choice, begins to take the same course that was taken by the predecessors.

It is serious if it takes one year to elect the successor, undergo the presidential election, and to tighten the reform politics. It is serious if the reform achievement returns to the beginning or stops growing during the blank stage of power. In order not to repeat such waste time, two things should be done first. President should offer opportunities to participate in the administration of national affairs to the successors. By assigning them even a part of reform politics, the ruler should allow them to experience or to verify their ability. It is an absolutely necessary measure to fundamentally reconsider the five-year single term system for presidency and to disperse the power to the parties, which is concentrated to President, in order to activate the party politics and to resolve the issue of successor.