By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
Former Grand National Party (GNP) chairwoman Rep. Park Geun-hye repeated her objection Saturday to the party mainstream's offer to appoint one of Park's close aides as the next floor leader.
Park's stern opposition to the proposal to elect her right-hand man, Rep. Kim Moo-sung, as the party whip, is expected to further deepen the simmering discord between the pro-Lee Myung-bak faction and those supporting the eldest daughter of late President Park Chung-hee within the ruling party. Kim is a four-term lawmaker representing a Busan district.
``There are always a mainstream faction and a fringe group in a political party,'' Park said in a meeting with Korean journalists in San Francisco. ``That's not a conflict, but a usual thing. It's just weird (for the pro-Lee group) to say that appointing the other faction's personnel as a party leader would heal the wound between the factions.''
She repeated her calls to adhere to party principles in selecting the floor leader without a political decision. She has said Kim's nomination would go against the party constitution, which guarantees the election of the floor leader through a free vote.
Park is to return home today after a weeklong visit to the United States.
Since the fiercely contested presidential primary in 2007, the GNP has been divided into the two groups.
Prior to parliamentary elections in April last year, some of pro-Park lawmakers left the party and created a splinter party after they were denied GNP candidacy.
In the latest April 29 by-elections, the governing party lost in all five electoral districts, which some critics say are blamed for the inter-party test of authority between the pro-Lee and pro-Park politicians.
In the wake of the defeat, party chairman Park Hee-tae unveiled a plan to appoint Kim to the new floor leader post as part of measures to achieve harmony within the party, by extending an olive branch to the former chairwoman.