Die Cast for Political Novice Chung
By Oh Young-jin
Staff Reporter
When he confirmed Monday morning on national television that the government will indeed go back on the plan to relocate some of its ministries, Prime Minister Chung Un-chan sealed his political fate. But whether that destiny will end in political death or his own successful presidential run remains to be seen.
Despite the high stakes, the 62-year-old former president of Seoul National University looked to be in business-as-usual mode, reading his words carefully without showing much emotion.
Perhaps he was able to maintain his calm thanks to the long and thoughtful preparations he made for this particular occasion.
It was extensively reported that Chung struck a "heart-to-heart" agreement with President Lee Myung-bak, if not a written one, when he was named prime minister in September.
Lee needed Chung, a man of reputation hailing from Chungcheong Province, to pacify regional opposition to his new plan for Sejong City. Lee is seeking to bring an end to the previous administration's plan ― which was supported by the Constitutional Court and endorsed by his own Grand National Party ― to move parts of the government to an administrative city. In Lee's proposition, Chung apparently saw an opening to put himself at the center of the political map.
During the following four months, Chung has seen it all.
When he visited the site designated for Sejong City, he was pelted with eggs.
He was criticized for being a political opportunist when he spoke on President Lee's behalf at the National Assembly.
He's also played the role of chief coordinator between the government and the ruling party, which seems antsy over how Lee's big push will affect the party's chances in the June 2 local elections.
Simply put, Chung has been trying his best to fulfill his end of the bargain with Lee.
By doing so, Chung has acted as the shield and lance that Lee has deftly used to divert political heat and push ahead with his agenda. Conspicuous by his absence on Monday was President Lee.
Even before he made his political debut, Chung was no political novice.
In the lead-up to the presidential election in December 2008, Chung was one of the most sought-after potential candidates in the then-ruling camp, which was struggling to find a competent standard bearer to go head-to-head with then-candidate Lee Myung-bak.
But Chung said no to virtually all bidders who tried to court him, apparently concluding that he had a weak political base and seeing the danger of being reduced to a puppet whose strings were pulled by politicians.
But with Monday's speech, Chung cleared the first of many hurdles on his way to whatever his ultimate political goal may be.
His next task will be figuring out how to sell the new Sejong City plan to the nation.
The government plans to use, over the next two months, all it has to persuade the nation to accept its plan, focusing foremost on placating the residents of Chungcheong Province.
Chungcheong residents have long played an interesting role in Korean electoral politics. Because of its small population, they can't push a presidential candidate into power on its own electoral strength, but they occasionally play the role of spoiler.
Also, they harbor a political inferiority complex based on the fear that they may be abandoned after being used. In modern political history, there are more than a couple of examples to support this collective fear.
If Chung fails in his mission to steer his province's people to accept the revised Sejong City plan, Lee could be forced to ditch him in a move to minimize political damage.
Even if he succeeds, Chung would still find himself to be part of a big picture that he has little influence on, unless President Lee achieves a "grand deal" with Park Geun-hye, his political rival who strongly opposes his plan.
Park endorsed the initial Sejong City plan when she was the GNP's chairwoman. Thus, going back on it could damage her reputation and, furthermore, adversely affect her chance at the presidency.
Chung's Monday speech made one thing clear. Despite his short period of time he has spent in the political arena, Chung is politically astute enough to keep a poker face and declare there is no room for politics to intervene in the new Sejong plan, apparently knowing that he was taking the biggest political gamble of his lifetime.