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183303
Fri, 05/20/2011 - 10:36
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https://oananews.org//node/183303
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Lee calls for end to factional division within ruling party
(LEAD) SEOUL, March 20 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Myung-bak called for an end to the factional division within the ruling Grand National Party on Monday, asking newly elected party leaders to carry out reforms and improve internal unity to win back public trust.
Lee's meeting with Rep. Hwang Woo-yea, the new floor leader and acting chairman of the GNP, came as a sense of crisis deepens within the party after it suffered a humiliating defeat in last month's by-elections, which were seen as a test ahead of next year's general and presidential elections.
Analysts have blamed the declining popularity of the GNP partly on the long-running factional feud between mainstream members loyal to President Lee and others backing Park Geun-hye, Lee's erstwhile rival considered a leading contender in the next presidential race.
The two rival factions, referred to as "pro-Lee" and "pro-Park," have often clashed over a series of issues, many times unrelated to policies, raising perceptions that the ruling party is preoccupied with the factional fight without caring for people.
"As the ruling party in power, it is important to show a responsible attitude to the people," Lee told Hwang and other GNP leaders at the start of the breakfast meeting. "We should debate with each other over policies ... and we also have to get rid of such things as pro-Lee and pro-Park."
In last month's elections, the GNP won only one of three key races in the elections, losing out in its stronghold district of Bundang, south of Seoul, to main opposition Democratic Party leader Sohn Hak-kyu.
That sparked a sense of crisis that the GNP could suffer crushing defeats in next year's parliamentary and presidential elections, with younger GNP members calling for steps to end its image as a party for the rich and privileged.
One of the main demands from younger GNP members is that the government should roll back tax cuts for conglomerates and use the additional income to carry out welfare measures for ordinary people. Lee has described his government as "pro-business," with tax cuts being one of its key policies.
Lee appears to be negative about demands to end the tax cuts.
A senior presidential aide quoted him as saying that the GNP can win support from the people when it pushes for policies in a "consistent" manner.
"I think the remark means that a political party should be consistent in its policy and ideology without being swayed by circumstances," the official said, adding that no decision has been made on the tax cut issue.
Hwang, the acting GNP leader, called for greater welfare measures for the public as a way to win public support, saying ordinary people complain that the fruits of growth in South Korea's economy and international status are out of their reach, according to GNP spokeswoman Bae Eun-hee.
Lee's meeting with Rep. Hwang Woo-yea, the new floor leader and acting chairman of the GNP, came as a sense of crisis deepens within the party after it suffered a humiliating defeat in last month's by-elections, which were seen as a test ahead of next year's general and presidential elections.
Analysts have blamed the declining popularity of the GNP partly on the long-running factional feud between mainstream members loyal to President Lee and others backing Park Geun-hye, Lee's erstwhile rival considered a leading contender in the next presidential race.
The two rival factions, referred to as "pro-Lee" and "pro-Park," have often clashed over a series of issues, many times unrelated to policies, raising perceptions that the ruling party is preoccupied with the factional fight without caring for people.
"As the ruling party in power, it is important to show a responsible attitude to the people," Lee told Hwang and other GNP leaders at the start of the breakfast meeting. "We should debate with each other over policies ... and we also have to get rid of such things as pro-Lee and pro-Park."
In last month's elections, the GNP won only one of three key races in the elections, losing out in its stronghold district of Bundang, south of Seoul, to main opposition Democratic Party leader Sohn Hak-kyu.
That sparked a sense of crisis that the GNP could suffer crushing defeats in next year's parliamentary and presidential elections, with younger GNP members calling for steps to end its image as a party for the rich and privileged.
One of the main demands from younger GNP members is that the government should roll back tax cuts for conglomerates and use the additional income to carry out welfare measures for ordinary people. Lee has described his government as "pro-business," with tax cuts being one of its key policies.
Lee appears to be negative about demands to end the tax cuts.
A senior presidential aide quoted him as saying that the GNP can win support from the people when it pushes for policies in a "consistent" manner.
"I think the remark means that a political party should be consistent in its policy and ideology without being swayed by circumstances," the official said, adding that no decision has been made on the tax cut issue.
Hwang, the acting GNP leader, called for greater welfare measures for the public as a way to win public support, saying ordinary people complain that the fruits of growth in South Korea's economy and international status are out of their reach, according to GNP spokeswoman Bae Eun-hee.
