PM Hwang may rise to conservatives' savior

By Choi Ha-young

Hwang Kyo-ahn

Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn is emerging as a powerful presidential candidate for conservatives, as former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s approval rating remains stagnant.

Hwang, serving as acting president in place of the impeached President Park Geun-hye, ranked fifth on a poll by Realmeter, Thursday, standing at 7.4 percent. He was ranked higher than South Chungcheong Governor An Hee-jung, one of the emerging liberal candidates.

Ban stood at 15.4 percent, down from 22.1 percent a month ago, while Moon Jae-in of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) extended his lead to 32.8 percent as the most favored candidate.

The poll also showed Ban’s lack of competitive edge in the face of the DPK hopefuls. Assuming bilateral matches ― Ban versus Moon, versus Seongnam Mayor Lee Jae-myung and versus An ― Ban was defeated by gaps of 23.3 percent, 18.1 percent and 21.1 percent, respectively.

“If Ban’s approval rating makes no more progress after the Lunar New Year holidays, Hwang’s poll number will grow more,” political analyst Hwang Tae-soon told The Korea Times.

“For conservatives, Hwang has shown conservative values, as seen by his previous decision to disband the Unified Progressive Party as justice minister.”

The ruling Saenuri Party, without its own candidate, openly supported Hwang. “The opposition parties should refrain from undermining the efforts Hwang has made,” the ruling party’s floor leader Rep. Chung Woo-taik said Thursday.

Hwang has neither dismissed speculation about his bid for presidency, nor admitted it. “What I’m doing and thinking now is to make every effort to overcome domestic and international difficulties and stabilize state affairs as the acting president,” he said in a press conference on Jan. 23.

However, he actively expressed his views on sensitive diplomatic issues, such as the deployment of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, rather than keeping the status quo until the Constitutional Court makes a ruling on Park’s impeachment.

Hwang has also had a schedule similar to those of presidential hopefuls ― visiting military camps, kindergartens and street markets ― attracting criticisms from opposition parties.

“Hwang should be aware that he is also tied in to the influence-peddling scandal involving Park,” Rep. Koh Yong-jin, spokesman of the DPK, said in a statement Thursday.

Rep. Yoo Seong-min of the Bareun Party pointed out a procedural problem, saying the deputy prime minister will have to replace the acting president in case he decides to run for president.

The court is expected to make a decision by March 13. If it acknowledges the impeachment, the presidential election will be held at the end of April. If Hwang is to run in the election, he will have to resign from his post at least by mid-March because candidates need to be out of official posts at least 30 days before the election.