PM nominee confirmation must be put to a vote

The ruling and opposition parties have agreed to table the vote for confirmation of Prime Minister Nominee Lee Wan-koo on next Tuesday. After unilaterally adopting the confirmation hearing progress report on the PM nominee Thursday, the ruling Saenuri party tried to put the confirmation to a vote at a parliamentary plenary session. However, the main opposition party New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD) strongly opposed against the vote and proposed to postpone the session to Feb. 16. With the ruling party’s acceptance of the offer, the ruling and opposition parties reached a consensus by meeting each other halfway.

The purpose of the confirmation hearing for a PM nominee and nomination vote at the Assembly is to validate integrity and qualification of the candidate and determine the endorsement by voting of lawmakers. A secret ballot is guaranteed in the nomination vote as it enables an individual lawmaker to cast a vote according to his or her conviction without being restricted by the party platform or the public opinion. During the late President Kim Dae-jung administration, two PM nominees, Jang Sang and Jang Dae-hwan, fell through by disapproval from the Grand National Party, then main opposition party in 2002. Nonetheless, the nomination vote was held in a normal way.

It is not certain what attitude the NPAD would take on next Tuesday. The main opposition party demanded Lee to resign voluntarily on Thursday and set the party platform to make opposition against the confirmation process itself. Postponement of the vote may be a strategy to buy time in an attempt to avoid the ruling party’s unilateral endorsement. If the opposition party objects to the nomination vote or demands for postponement again on next Tuesday, it would only give justification to the ruling party’s seeking to carry out the vote alone.

It is true that the PM nominee’s integrity, perspective on the press and behaviors turned out all disappointing. Even though, it does not constitute a good reason for the opposition party to refuse the confirmation vote itself. No matter what kind of party platform the NPAD has, the party must participate in the nomination vote in a fair manner. The opposition party has pursued politics full of conflict and strife, leaving disappointment to the public. Unless newly appointed NPAD leader Moon Jae-in shows changes, it would be hard for the party to regain trust from the public.

Postponement of PM nominee confirmation vote may cause a delay in the cabinet reshuffling and organizational shake-up at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae that President Park Geun-hye is having in mind. However, all of these are attributed to the president herself, who has chosen flawed nominees and left the personnel issues unaddressed. Even though the opposition party participates and Lee’s confirmation is put to a vote in a normal way, there is no guarantee that Lee is endorsed. President Park must be prepared given such possibilities.