Approval of PM nominee remains uncertain

May 16, 2022, 09:36 am

		0
Prime Minister nominee Han Duk-soo speaks during his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly in Seoul on May 3, 2022./ Source: Yonhap

AsiaToday reporter Lee Wook-jae

The approval of Prime Minister nominee Han Duk-soo, who will be in charge of running the Yoon Suk-yeol government’s cabinet, is in a state of constant turmoil. It has been more than ten days since the confirmation hearing for Han ended, but there is concern that that the ‘prime minister vacuum’ will be prolonged as the schedule for the plenary session for approval has not been decided.

As President Yoon Suk-yeol pushed ahead with minister appointments amid delays in their parliamentary confirmations, the main opposition liberal Democratic Party (DP) is seeking to disapprove the prime minister nominee, but is facing a dilemma as the approval can influence public sentiment in the upcoming local elections in June. In such a situation, the ruling People Power Party (PPP) is seemingly seeking for a compromise that proceeds with the approval of Han by dropping out Health Minister nominee Chung Ho-young while securing Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon appointed by Yoon.

“It has already been 13 days since the confirmation hearings for Prime Minister nominee Han Duk-soo ended. Tomorrow is the 40th day since the proposal for a confirmation hearing request has been submitted to the National Assembly,” said PPP spokesperson Yang Geum-hee. “There are serious pending issues at home and abroad, but the Democratic Party’s evasion of the plenary session itself to ratify the prime minister is a neglect of the role and responsibility of the National Assembly.”

The PPP is pressing the DP to approve Han by stressing the fact that the liberal party is dragging down the Yoon administration in a time when people’s livelihoods are unstable due to internal and external factors such as the pandemic, soaring prices, and North Korea’s armed provocation.

The DP seems to be disturbed with Han’s approval. Previously, it tried to emphasize the Yoon administration's failure to appoint Cabinet members, but failed to show any significant results. As Yoon forced the appointment of minister nominees, the DP tried to overturn public sentiment by delaying Han’s approval, but the DP is facing backlash from the public.

In fact, the ruling PPP posted the highest approval rating in 8 years in some recent public opinion polls while the DP’s approval rating fell sharply to the 30 percent level. On May 12, DP Rep. Jung Sung-ho proposed to vote for a confirmation hearing for Han, saying, “It is politically correct to give you a chance even when you are asked to take responsibility.”

Besides, the DP is under fire for sexual misconduct controversy involving Rep. Park Wan-ju, sexually offensive comment made by Rep. Choi Kwang-wook, and secondary harm made by a former secretary of Rep. Kim Won-I, and the party is concerned that such controversies could affect the upcoming local elections. Previously, the party has been hit due to several sexual abuse cases involving former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon and former Busan Mayor Oh Keo-don.

While the DP is expected to hold a general assembly meeting on Monday to discuss the approval of the prime minister nominee, the PPP has reportedly suggested President Yoon to drop out nominee Chung, who is accused of using his position at a hospital to get his children admitted to an affiliated medical school, in order to speed up the approval of Han.

Appointing nominee Chung is also a burden for the PPP. Besides, if Chung is withdrawn, it would give the DP a cause for Han’s approval. PPP Chairman Lee Jun-seok reportedly had a 90-minute private meeting with Yoon on Friday at the presidential office in Yongsan and requested a “quick decision” for Chung.

#prime minister #Han Duk-soo #approval