Political turmoil inevitable after impeachment vote

Minor opposition People’s Party lawmakers place a placard calling for President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment in front of their respective seats on the eve of the impeachment vote against the President at the National Assembly, Thursday. / Yonhap

By Kang Seung-woo

The impeachment of President Park Geun-hye, which is likely today, will not be the end of political turmoil, but only the start of another turbulent chapter in Korean politics.

Many hot-button issues are still lurking, which may throw the political circle into deeper chaos.

Rival parties are highly anticipated to lock horns over whether Park should step down, even if she is impeached, and the role of the prime minister as acting head of state. This is closely linked to an early presidential election.

Impeachment is likely to result in an evitable division within the ruling Saenuri Party, as well.

Today, the National Assembly plans to vote on whether to impeach President Park and the motion is highly expected to get the required two-thirds majority in the 300-seat Assembly. The Constitutional Court will then review the legality of the impeachment, which may take up to six months.

The prosecution has labeled Park a suspect in the corruption scandal in which her confidant Choi Soon-sil has been indicted for extorting money from the nation’s business groups. However, Park is immune from criminal prosecution except on charges of insurrection or treason while in office.

Should Park be suspended from duty, Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn will take over her job.

However, opposition parties are not willing to approve Hwang, Park’s key associate, as acting leader because they see him as an extension of the Park administration.

“Irrespective of the role he will play as acting president, Hwang should take joint responsibility with Park for the scandal,” said Rep. Park Beom-kye of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) in a radio interview, Thursday.

DPK Chairwoman Choo Mi-ae said all Cabinet members should resign.

“The people will not accept Hwang as acting president. If the impeachment motion is passed, political leaders need to discuss forming an interim Cabinet or replacing the prime minister,” she said.

However, the ruling side claims such a move will deepen political uncertainties, denouncing it as unconstitutional.

“If the President is impeached, the opposition must guarantee that the prime minister can run state affairs successfully,” said Rep. Cho Won-jin of the Saenuri Party.

“If the opposition presses Hwang to quit, it will be unacceptable.”

The Saenuri Party and the DPK are already at odds over Park’s early resignation.

The opposition, spearheaded by former leader Moon Jae-in, is calling for Park to bow out right after the impeachment motion passes the Assembly, claiming she was involved in the scandal.

Should Park decide on an early resignation, the nation will hold a presidential election in February or March 2017, which would be a big boon to Moon, the most favored potential candidate who has topped the list of potential candidates for the sixth straight week, according to local pollster Realmeter, Dec. 1.

However, the governing party believes the move is Moon’s political tactic to win the presidency “easily.”

“His call for holding the presidential election as early as possible indicates that Moon seems blind to his own hunger for power,” said Rep. Yoo Seong-min, one of the Saenuri Party’s potential presidential candidates.

Floor leader Chung Jin-suk also said Moon should refrain from trampling on the Constitution.

Constitutional experts have differing views on whether Park can resign after she is impeached.

The ruling party is also expected to see its deep-rooted factional feud intensify, which could lead to a division.

As the anti-Park faction in the Saenuri Party ― estimated to number 35 ― seems determined to vote for the motion, it is on a collision course with those loyal to the President, including Chairman Lee Jung-hyun.

The Park loyalists are likely to oust the rival faction from the party, while the latter will attempt to unseat the current pro-Park leadership and retire them from politics to reform the party.

“Following the impeachment vote, the Saenuri Party should begin a rebuilding process,” said Rep. Choung Byoung-gug, a member of the anti-Park faction, Wednesday.

“It is our mission to clear the ground for a sound conservative force.”