By Kim Yon-se
Staff Reporter
A confidant of President-elect Lee Myung-bak hinted at the possibility that the Presidential Transition Committee might present a ``revised'' government reorganization bill through inter-party negotiations.
``I believe we (the transition team and the Grand National Party) should hold close talks with the pro-government United New Democratic Party and other parties on the bill,'' Lee's spokesman Joo Ho-young said in a radio program Tuesday.
He said, ``We certainly want passage of the original bill,'' adding that GNP lawmakers, who support the bill, are only a part of the National Assembly.
His remarks came one day after President Roh Moo-hyun said that he was unwilling to sign into law the bill initiated by Lee's transition team. Roh urged Lee to sign the bill himself when he is inaugurated on Feb. 25.
Regarding the incumbent President's remarks suggesting vetoing the bill, the spokesman said ``I understand President Roh's nervous sentiment as his government structure is about to break up. But the important issue lies in what the public wants.''
The UNDP demands that the Ministry of Unification and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family be retained.
``We respect the direction and purpose of the government overhaul plan presented by the transition committee, but we discovered many flaws in the scheme since it was developed in such a short period,'' UNDP chief policymaker Kim Jin-pyo said.
``We must keep the Unification Ministry because it is a core government organization which deals with inter-Korean affairs, and some issues like the one concerning the North's nuclear ambitions can greatly impact the economy,'' he said.
Kim said the gender equality ministry must also remain as an independent ministry since its merger will overload the welfare ministry.
There is great possibility that it will not be able to offer proper services to women and teenagers, he said.
The UNDP, which has 137 seats in the 299-member legislature, has continued to criticize the GNP for being arrogant and unilateral in pushing a hasty passage of the government reorganization bill.
The GNP is in need of support from other parties to pass the bill as the conservative party has only 130 seats in the Assembly, 20 seats short of a majority.
The Democratic Labor Party (DLP) has nine seats and the Democratic Party has six.