Lee Rules Out Referendum on Sejong Plan
By Kang Hyun-kyung
Staff Reporter
President Lee Myung-bak Tuesday ruled out the possibility of the nation holding a referendum on the Sejong City project.
"The presidential office is not considering holding a referendum on the issue," he said during a meeting with senior secretaries at Cheong Wa Dae, according to his spokesman Park Sun-kyoo.
Two days earlier, a senior presidential secretary told reporters on condition of anonymity that President Lee could make a "grave decision" if inter-party negotiations do not lead to a consensus, reversing his earlier remark.
As he switched the position, a question pops up: Should the job of drawing a consensus on Sejong City be done by representatives or their clients?
Opponents raised the question of can leaving the crucial agenda in the hands of the people, just because inter-party agreement is hardly likely, be justifiable.
In a democratic country, they argue, direct voting by people is the last resort that a political leader should rely on, only when he or she is faced with a big decision, which will require the entire nation to face the consequences afterwards.
"I am telling you that the presidential office is not considering a referendum as an option," the secretary said, asking not to be named.
He was the same figure who said last week that President Lee might make a decision unless the current debate over the controversial plan bears fruit in the parliament.
His comments were construed as meaning that Lee didn't rule out the possibility of going to a popular vote in case no bipartisan agreement is reached.
"What I meant with the remark last week was that the debate should be wrapped up at some point in the near future," he said.
Rep. Shim Jae-chul of the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) first proposed the idea of holding a referendum as a solution to end the debate over the future of the brand-new city in South Chungcheong Province.
The Constitution stipulates that a President can call on the public to vote on crucial agendas closely related to national security.
Shim claimed the original plan of relocating nine ministries and four government agencies out of Seoul would endanger national safety as it could create a security vacuum by dividing the government functions into two cities.
The proposal came after lawmakers learned the chances for the alternative plan of creating a business hub in Sejong City to be passed in the National Assembly were dim due to the division inside the ruling party.
The relative probability of the plan to get the nod from the public appeared to be high as public opinion polls found more people in the nation, except residents of the Chungcheong Province, support the alternative plan.
Despite the easier way to get the result the ruling camp want ― the passage of the alternative plan ― the idea has failed to draw full support from GNP lawmakers.
Supporters of former GNP Chairwoman Park Geun-hye, who hold the key to the fate of the new plan, are opposed to holding a referendum. They have shown few signs of backing down from their position.
Even supporters of President Lee are divided over a public vote.
Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon said reaching a bipartisan agreement on the Sejong City project was a job to be done by legislators, stressing that it shouldn't be passed on to the public.
"I think a referendum is the last resort that we should go for on this matter. We have the National Assembly here to handle the agenda. The people chose us to come up with a solution," he said in an interview.