Park may have to ditch minister pick

By Jun Ji-hye

Yoon Jin-sook, Oceans and Fisheries Minister nominee

President Park Geun-hye is under mounting pressure, even from members of the ruling party, to withdraw her nomination of Yoon Jin-sook to be Minister of Oceans and Fisheries.

Nevertheless, the President has signaled that she will push ahead with Yoon’s appointment by asking legislators to agree to it by Tuesday. Consent from legislators over the nomination is not required by law and Park may legally appoint Yoon Wednesday, even if the National Assembly does not agree to her request.

Yoon became a target of ridicule after she repeatedly answered “I don’t know” during a parliamentary confirmation hearing. This resulted in the assembly failing to endorse a report on her qualifications to lead the ministry.

“President Park will have to respond to what the National Assembly says. That will be the only way to move toward change,” said Rep. Hwang Young-cheul of the ruling Saenuri Party, Tuesday. “I believe Cheong Wa Dae already knows what lawmakers of the ruling and opposition parties think of Yoon. I hope President Park makes a ‘good’ decision.”

Rep. Hong Young-pyo of the ruling party also claimed in his radio appearance: “It would be better for the President to give up on Yoon’s appointment because there is a big difference between what Park thinks of her and objective judgments from others.”

The main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP) raised the same point.

“An opinion poll shows that about 65 percent are opposed to Yoon’s appointment. Only 11 percent are in favor. Members of the ruling party expressed skepticism about the appointment too. If the President enforces the appointment, it will only add to her image of being non-communicative,” said DUP floor leader Park Ki-choon.

Rep. Woo Won-shik, vice floor leader of the DUP, chimed in, “The President apologized for the appointment fiasco when she invited DUP leaders to a dinner at Cheong Wa Dae last Friday. We will have to doubt her word and she will not be able to maintain harmony with the opposition party, if she presses ahead with Yoon’s appointment.”

A day earlier, Floor Leader Park claimed that DUP leaders will not attend a Cheong Wa Dae dinner scheduled for Tuesday, unless the President changes her mind. But Rep. Yun Kwan-seok later said, “The DUP will participate in the dinner as planned and will speak clearly to president that we are opposing to the appointment.”

Yoon rebutted the Saenuri Party’s Floor Leader Lee Hahn-koo, who said, “If appointed, Yoon could be the minister in a vegetative state.”

She said, “This is an absurd claim. I would have no problems leading the ministry because I have experience and expertise in the oceans and fisheries sector.”