President-elect Yoon moves forward after election

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol dines with representatives of Namdaemun Market in Seoul after having a meeting with them, March 14. It was his first outdoor event after being elected the country's new president. Joint Press Corp

Yoon reaffirms need to scrap senior presidential secretary on civil affairs to end era of spying on civilians

By Ko Dong-hwan

In the wake of Yoon Suk-yeol's razor-thin victory in the presidential election last week, with a heavily divided electorate, the former prosecutor general has begun moving toward rebuilding the nation in a more constructive way.

One of the signs showing his willingness to follow through on his campaign promises came on Monday, when he visited Namdaemun Market for a meeting with its merchant association. In his previous visit last November, he pledged that, if elected, he would provide 100 trillion won ($80.5 billion) in emergency rescue funds to help merchants who were hit hard by the economic fallout of the pandemic.

"I remember what I said here last year and will let my presidential transition team, once it is launched, discuss ways to create and implement the funds as soon as they can," he told the merchants on Monday. He said his government will provide financial assistance to help merchants live decent lives if they work hard.

Earlier in the day, he vowed to go without a senior presidential secretary for civil affairs.

While having tea with Ahn Cheol-soo ― who has been tapped to lead the presidential transition committee ― and other senior officials, Yoon was critical of the position, as he stated that it had in the past played the role of removing political opponents by conducting investigations in the name of examining their credentials and reputations. He said he would end such outdated practices, vowing to focus only on discovering and coordinating policies to serve the public.

Abolishing the senior presidential secretary for civil affairs position was one of his campaign pledges aimed at reshuffling the presidential office, which he said has too much power and is vulnerable to abuse of power.

Whenever the People Power Party (PPP) candidate spoke to his supporters on the campaign trail, he had performed his signature uppercut move and told them they should no longer be victimized by the government. Instead of proposing future policies, his campaign was characterized more by emotional outbursts that he would change the status quo. But such headstrong determination from a political rookie without a clear blueprint for his future administration worried many and provided ammunition for lawmakers from the rival Democratic Party of Korea (DPK).

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Ahn Cheol-soo, chairperson of the Presidential Transition Committee, speaks during a press conference inside the National Assembly, March 14. Newsis

Now with the election behind him as he starts shaping his presidential transition committee, Yoon is trying to prove he isn't just a hot-headed ex-prosecutor eager to punish the sitting president and his party. Some think he looks like a man with a plan who is trying to make good on the pledges and promises he made while campaigning. Such an impression also comes from his lineup of appointees for the committee, which largely consisted of his aides and political allies as many had anticipated.

One of Yoon's post-election moves based on keeping his campaign promises was to appoint campaign partner Ahn Cheol-soo as chairperson of the transition committee. Because Ahn, who had run in the election for the minor opposition People's Party, stepped out of the race to join Yoon's election camp only days before the election, there were growing rumors as to which title Ahn would be given if Yoon got elected.

"Yoon's most symbolic action in keeping his word as President-elect was making Ahn the chair of the committee," Myongji University professor and political commentator Kim Hyung-joon told The Korea Times. "Ahead of the election, they had agreed on a sweeping shift from the Moon administration and running a coalition government. That gave us the impression that they had formed a trustworthy rapport and were willing to sustain it." And this naturally led to assumptions Ahn would be offered a top-tier position such as the committee head or the prime minister's seat.

Besides Ahn, Yoon's election camp top chief Kwon Young-sae and strategic planner Won Hee-ryong were also appointed the committee's vice chairperson and planning chief, respectively ― widely anticipated picks that thus reduced expectations Yoon could put up a "political show" by appointing unexpected "surprise" figures.

Since being elected, Yoon has also been mentioning his campaign pledges for abolishing the country's Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and relocating the country's presidential office from a secluded spot behind Gyeongbok Palace to a more open space next to Gwanghwamun Square. Yoon has shown how uncompromising he can be by keeping the former pledge despite intense opposition, especially from women, who have continually protested the notion since before and now after the election.

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, right, and Ahn Cheol-soo, chairperson of the Presidential Transition Committee have a meeting at Yoon's temporary office in Financial Supervisory Service's Training Center in Seoul's Jongno District, March 14. Newsis

Some think that Yoon's steps in forming his transition team to take control of the government in May show signs of a working style from his time as prosecutor-general: his propensity for valuing ability in a person rather than loyalty to him. He made it clear, in a press conference on March 13 at the PPP's headquarters in Yeouido, that he will not reserve a certain portion of the seats on the committee or his cabinet for women. He also said he will not appoint aides for his new administration according to regions.

"Truly unifying a country must involve selecting people based on their abilities so that they can cater to members of the public across the country with fairer chances," Yoon said during the press conference.

Other experts said, however, that Yoon hasn't appeared much different from his predecessors so far in terms of following through on his election promises and filling his transition committee with his aides.

"It's too early to judge how Yoon will shape the incoming government since it hasn't even been a week since he was elected," Ewha Womans University professor and political expert Yoo Sung-jin told The Korea Times. "Past presidents all did pretty much the same thing around the same time."

The late former President Roh Moo-hyun, who was elected in 2002, initiated the practice of appointing aides from a presidential candidate's election camp to a follow-up presidential transition committee, according to Kim.

"Most of the members of Roh's election camp joined the committee, and 70 percent of them then followed him to his new government," Kim said, concluding that Yoon's post-election moves so far don't stand out much compared those of other candidates in the past. "His repeated promises to keep his pledges are rather minor ones (to consider at this point) as they will have to go through a complicated process to be accepted and realized, with participation from lawmakers of the now-main opposition DPK."