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At a news conference on Wednesday, former Seoul mayor and presidential hopeful Lee Myung-bak expressed his approval of reforms proposed by Grand National Party Chairman Kang Jae-sup. Lee said, ¡°Before we put the blame on anyone (for the defeat in by-elections), I realize my responsibility.¡± In comments to former GNP leader and presidential contender Park Geun-hye, Lee said, ¡°Let¡¯s meet and talk in order to unite the party and regain the trust of the public.¡± Park accepted the offer. Internal strife within the GNP following the election defeat and calls for the party¡¯s leaders to resign appear to have calmed down.
The GNP defeat in the by-elections are losses for Lee and Park as well. That¡¯s how the public perceives it. By accepting responsibility and apologizing to the public, Lee is doing his duty as a politician who is seeking to run for president. Lee reportedly had a hard time over the past several days trying to quell hard line factions within the GNP who called for the resignation of party head Kang. Park also wasted no time in accepting Lee¡¯s offer to discuss matters. For the first time in a while, the two officials showed political insight.
People say another fight is brewing within the GNP. And there are plenty of reasons for confrontation, including how much emphasis should be placed on approval ratings in choosing a party candidate for president, supplementing the new leadership, forming a committee to manage the party convention, as well as the selection of methods to screen the candidates.
It is impossible to prevent bickering among candidates in elections. And criticisms and defenses by candidates, when conducted within certain boundaries, actually help voters in making their choices. But emotionally charged attacks and low blows exchanged by candidates are senseless acts in the eyes of voters and foster infighting rather than competition. The behavior displayed by the two GNP presidential hopefuls recently was infighting. It wasn¡¯t a matter of whether one supported or opposed the GNP. The problem was the fact that the two candidates were behaving in a manner typical of old-style Korean politics.
The public is sick and tired of this administration. But they don¡¯t feel it¡¯s imperative to hand over the reins of power to the GNP either. The fact that an independent candidate won the by-elections in the GNP¡¯s stronghold of South Gyeongsang Province demonstrates this sentiment among voters. The public will closely watch the upcoming meeting between Lee and Park with lingering suspicions as to whether it will be okay to hand over power to the GNP.
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