[Editorial] Hegemony War in MDP Victimizing South Korea Citizens

The internal dispute in the ruling Millennium Democratic Party (MDP) has crossed a dangerous line. We are now deeply concerned about the future of this government. The intra-party dispute is stretching the tolerance level of those who have been very patient of the bickering, believing the current dispute to be a natural result of the government’s transition from a monarchist presidential system. The ruling MDP members are making it clear that they do not care about the people, however. It appears as if they are only concerned with continuing this disruptive and unproductive power struggle. It has come to a point whereby the government deserves to forfeit the epithet "ruling."

This internal struggle in the ruling MDP is putting a heavy burden on the normal operation of the country. We do not believe that this bodes well for the Roh administration if this is to be the foundation on which they plan on governing the country over the next four and a half years. All MDP members are doing now is finger pointing. Given this absurd reality, it is difficult to conclude that the party is anything akin to an association of politicians committed to the same ideas and goals. Adding more fuel to the conflict is the move by some pro-Roh MDP members to create a new party. Perhaps the move is a necessary consequence of all this internal haggling.

MDP leader Chyung Dai-chul, who is refusing to be questioned by the prosecution for his role in a multimillion-dollar bribe, is protesting the investigation, making the ridiculous allegation that "Cheong Wa dae is losing its grip on the prosecution." The MDP floor whip, siding with Chyung, has threatened the prosecution, saying, "We will make it mandatory for the Prosecutor General to testify before the National Assembly." He opposes the long-awaited national project of selecting a nuclear waste storage site and criticizes President Roh Moo-hyun, alleging the president of no longer being a part of the ruling party.

The leadership of the party is obsessed with finger pointing. How can we expect the people in other parts of government to behave properly when those charged with running it are acting as foolishly as this? This is as clear an indication as any that the government is not concerned with carrying out the national business agenda. No one in the administration appears to be dedicated to tackling serious national problems. It seems doubtful at all whether the MDP deserves the status of a political party anymore. MDP members are doing nothing constructive for the welfare of South Koreans, and only victimizing citizens in the process.

Although Cheong Wa Dae staff lies at the core of all these problems, they are not solely responsible. The ultimate problem stems from the lack of leadership on the part of President Roh Moo-hyun. Some MDP members are arguing that Roh should forfeit his party membership, even though he is only five months into his presidency, as there no precedent to go on with a problem of this kind. Public opinion has it that if Roh Moo-hyun were to found a new party, it would face a crushing defeat in the upcoming general election. The situation has reached a critical breaking point, and it is high time President Roh looked directly into the problems himself and come up with ways to overcome this crisis.