By Kim Hyo-jin
The main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK) is shifting its focus from welfare to economic growth after its recent victory in the general election, where it overtook the ruling Saenuri Party as the National Assembly’s largest party.
Interim leader Kim Chong-in said Thursday that the party would launch a taskforce to produce policy proposals for corporate restructuring, and asked the government to also present relevant programs.
He stressed the need to carry out structural reforms for economic recovery, saying the MPK will present a bill to spur restructuring. The main opposition party had previously taken a lukewarm or negative stance to corporate restructuring, as it could entail job cuts.
The MPK also changed its position regarding allowing for-profit hospitals, saying it will support this as a way to revitalize the services sector.
This had been a contentious issue between rival parties in the outgoing 19th National Assembly.
The position change is seen as an attempt to push economic issues ahead of the 2017 presidential race, seeking to appeal to conservative voters, according to political pundits.
“We’re planning to set up a taskforce to look into corporate and industry restructuring,” Kim said, adding this was critical for the future of the Korean economy.
“The stagnant economy can only recover when structural problems are removed. The country cannot repeat Japan’s lost decade of economic growth.”
The MPK commenting positively about corporate restructuring is a rare move by the main opposition party that had been passive toward the idea due to job security concerns.
“Only more fundamental and active restructuring can guarantee our mid- to long-term growth,” Kim said during a party meeting, Wednesday. “We should not repeat restructuring in a way to prolong insolvent enterprises as we did during the 1997-98 foreign exchange crisis.”
Kim called on the government to prepare preemptive measures against the unemployment that will follow restructuring.
On the same day, Choi Woon-youl, the head of the MPK’s economy monitoring office and a lawmaker-elect, said the party needs to become “company-friendly.”
“The biggest complaint I got from the public during the campaign was that our party has stifled business too much,” Choi said during a speech to MPK lawmakers-elect. “Jobs are hardly created in an anti-business environment. We should all become company-friendly.”
Choi argued that allowing for-profit hospitals should be included in a pending bill aimed to revitalize the services sector, saying it will create more jobs.
The service industry promotion bill has been pending in the Assembly due to the opposition’s strong opposition to private medical services.
The MPK even stepped up the restructuring initiative, proposing a new bill.
“We can’t turn a deaf ear to conglomerates’ difficult situation. It’s time to pave the way for a bill to help corporate restructuring,” Lee Jong-kul, the party’s floor leader, said in a radio interview.
The government responded positively to the party’s move, saying it is ready to coordinate with the opposition for structural reforms and industrial renovation.
“It is a tactical shift eyeing a change of government,” said Yang Seung-ham, an emeritus professor of political science at Yonsei University. “It could build an image of a potential ruling party by working closely with the government.”
Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, the co-chairman of the splinter opposition People’s Party, also aligned with the MPK, calling for the government to execute structural reforms from a broader perspective.
The ruling Saenuri Party remained silent over the matter amid a leadership crisis in the aftermath of the election.