By Yi Whan-woo
Don’t underestimate the power of a president.
Just as some people talked about the possibility of a lame duck presidency for President Park Geun-hye this week, she proved her resilience in putting herself at the center of the unfolding controversy over the pension reform bill.
After all, her presidency just entered its third year in late February with just under three more years left to run. Of course, it remains to be seen whether it was a temporary blip or a harbinger of her brand of power politics.
Still, the leadership of the ruling Saenuri Party was upset, sustaining a major bruise to their credibility as they had to back away from the deal they signed.
The opposition party claimed that Park’s intervention was an act of tyranny ignoring parliamentary democracy, and accused the Saenuri leaders of going back on their word, “even before the ink of their signatures runs dry.”
Park’s words of regret on Monday over the parliamentary reform bill on civil servants’ pensions influenced the rival parties to lock horns and eventually not pass the proposal on the final day of the plenary session, Wednesday.
That came amid speculation that Saenuri Chairman Kim Moo-sung has consolidated his power in his party in the wake of the Saenuri’s victory in the April 29 parliamentary by-elections.
Kim, a non-mainstreamer who is against the pro-Park Geun-hye forces, led the party to victory in three of the four election districts without any support from the President.
Park’s daring act came amid a bribery scandal allegedly involving her aides.
They include her presidential Chief of Staff Lee Byung-ki and Lee Wan-koo, who stepped down as the prime minister last month. They are suspected of taking bribes from late Keangnam Enterprises Chairman Sung Woan-jong.
“The President is in her third year of her five-year presidency and it’s too early to say she will lose grip on the ruling party,” said Choi Chang-ryul, a political professor at Yongin University.
Lee Jun-han, a politics professor at the University of Incheon, agreed.
“The National Assembly’s failure to pass the bill shows Kim still can’t ignore Park’s opinion, although he has secured control over the ruling party.”
The Saenuri Party and the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD) initially agreed on May 2 to pass the bill that links the civil service pension with the National Pension.
At that time, Kim cast aside complaints from Cho Yoon-sun, the senior presidential secretary for political affairs, that the National Assembly “overstepped its authority” with the bill.
Cho spoke on behalf of the President, who had been sick due to travel fatigue following her 12-day visit to Latin America until April 27.
Kim explained Friday there was no conflict between Cheong Wa Dae and the Saenuri Party.
“The two sides have had communication over the bill,” he told reporters.
“I believe there was only a minor misunderstanding between Cheong Wa Dae and the party over the bill involving the income-replacement rate.”
The parties initially sought to raise the pension payment for National Pension recipients to 50 percent of their average monthly income during their entire career, from the current 40 percent level from 2028.
“It is possible that Cheong Wa Dae did not know about it,” Kim said.