Park: ‘Delay of reform to cause pain 100 times severer to future generations’

President Park Geun-hye said on Friday, “As the best path for the Republic of Korea to take a leap forward, the government is proactively pushing for four major reforms of public sector, labor, education and financial sector beginning early this year,” adding, “If we put off or use a stopgap measures for reform due to immediate pain, our descendants will suffer pain 10 times, even 100 times severer than pain we suffer.”

At a meeting with Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) leaders of the Republic of Korea at the presidential office on the day, Park said, “You, ROTC leaders are urged to take the lead to overcome this tough path through concerted efforts by taking responsibility for the nation and our future generations.” After her statement to the public on Thursday, Park thus emphasized anew the need for four reforms, and urged the public to extend cooperation. “Reform entails pain, and the privileged group strongly resists,” President Park said. “We should achieve labor reform without fail to create many new jobs and to give more youth and the public chances to work.”

The Central Committee of ROTC, which started activities through the national ROTC alumni association in 1967, announced and handed over to Park a ‘resolution to galvanize the economy and to achieve peaceful unification (of the two Koreas)."

Earlier, Park awarded letters of appointment to six vice minister-level officials, namely Kim Kyung-hwan, First Vice Minister of the Land, Infrastructure, Transport Ministry; Kim Hyun-sook, senior presidential secretary for employment and welfare; Kim Young-ho, member of the Board of Audit and Inspection’s audit board; Lee Wan-soo, secretary general at BAI; Oh Kyun, first vice minister of the Ministry for Government Policy Coordination; and Shim Oh-taik, the Prime Minister’s chief of staff.

mhpark@donga.com