Expectations of President Park Geun-hye

By Shin Hyun-gook

Today, President-elect Park Geun-hye will be sworn in as the 18th president of the Republic of Korea. Her inauguration will mark the end of President Lee Myung-bak’s term and the beginning of a new page in Korea as the country’s first female President.

Looking back at the last 60 years of political ups and downs, everyone in South Korea should come together in jubilant harmony and witness this peaceful transfer of power and celebration of democracy. It is a declaration of the continuity and endurance of constitutional government.

In the last six decades, Korea has trotted down tumultuous political paths: a tragic three-year fratricidal war in 1950; a bloody student uprising against dictatorial rule in 1960; the coup d’etat of 1961 led by the military general, Park Chung-hee, who later became president and was assassinated by one of his subordinates in 1979 during his tenure; and the deplorable end of the "Seoul Spring" through the Gwangju Massacre in 1980. Following the Gwangju Massacre, the then incumbent president succumbed to pressure from the military leadership and prematurely stepped down. It was only 25 years ago, in 1988, that the nation started establishing a history of peaceful power transitions.

Nonetheless, the Korean people in the south, enduring political hardships and arising from the ashes of war, with endeavor and determination, have built a prosperous nation now ranked among the highly advanced group of countries. Koreans have proven the superiority of a market-oriented economy versus communism. The stark contrast of capitalism and communism is vividly manifested on the Korean Peninsula. However, this tremendous difference between capitalistic South Korea and communist North Korea is, on the contrary, a cause of profound concern in national security issues.

During her election campaign, President-elect Park reiterated her determination for fundamental changes in every aspect of Korea. Starting today, she needs to show the world how she plans to materialize her promises for change. Preserving stability in and out of the Korean Peninsula, continuing the momentum of economic advancement, and redirecting social welfare; all these new challenges require new responses. In fulfilling her inaugural oath at this time of uncertainty in the Northeast Asia region, she needs utmost support from the general public.

However, surprisingly enough, Korean public support for Park seems to be diminishing as the inauguration approaches. According to the latest results of the Korea Gallop poll, approval ratings for Park have dropped to 49 percent. Public responses to her future stewardship have been on the downward trend for three consecutive weeks. Compared to the approval ratings of previous presidents before their respective inaugurations, 49 percent is extremely low and even lower than what she had earned in the election. She and her designated Cabinet members should seriously engage in figuring out what the dreams, hopes and words of the Korean public are.

Unlike presidential systems in other countries which allow for up to two consecutive four-year terms, the single five-year presidency in Korea may bring about a lame-duck situation from the first day of a president’s tenure. Certainly, inauguration is the beginning of a new era, but paradoxically, it could be the beginning of the end of the new President’s tenure.

Notwithstanding fluctuating approval ratings, leaders have little or no real impact on the organizations they lead, according to Professor Gautam Mukunda of Harvard University. In his book, ``Indispensable: When Leaders Really Matter,’’ Professor Mukunda explained the combination of three particular forces usually means that individual leaders have little or no real impact on the organizations they lead. The forces are: the external environment, internal organizational dynamics, and leader selection systems.

The external environment forces leaders to act in response to its pressures, leaving individual leaders little control or influence on policy and implementation. Internally, leaders respond to the bureaucratic politics and interests of constituencies within their organization, making the identity of the leader unimportant as long as the internal dynamics of the organization remain constant.

Nonetheless, the new President is expected to display strong and strenuous efforts for promised changes. She has been bestowed with absolute power to do her utmost in preserving peace and stability, and dealing with threats that the world presents to Korean freedoms and interests. She and her administration are reminded of an old saying, “Try your best, whatever the outcome will be. Do one's level best and leave the rest to God's will.”

The writer is a chair professor of the Catholic University of Daegu. He previously headed the Foreign News Division of the Korea Overseas Information Service. His email address is shinhyungook@hotmail.com.