Moon’s nominee rejected

President should work with opposition parties

President Moon Jae-in’s nominee for the chief of Constitutional Court was rejected by the National Assembly Monday. Kim Yi-su became the first Constitutional Court presidentdesignate to fail to get parliamentary confirmation since the court was founded in 1987. Out of the 293 lawmakers participating in the vote, 145 voted in favor, two short of the required majority.

The vote took place three months after Kim’s confirmation hearing amid an intense dispute over some of his rulings on the basis of progressive political views. He is well-known for being the only dissenting judge on the nine-member panel who opposed the December 2014 ruling by a majority that saw the disbanding of the pro-North Korean Unified Progressive Party in agreement with the Constitution.

Cheong Wa Dae strongly criticized the opposition parties for an “irresponsible decision” and using the “tyranny of the majority.” The ruling and opposition parties are blaming each other, hampering the passage of some key bills like the 2018 budget and others related to the people’s livelihood during the regular session which opened Sept. 1.

For Moon, the parliamentary veto means a huge political loss. Above all, it should be a reminder of how important it is for him to work with the opposition parties as his Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) has only 120 seats and is greatly outnumbered by the opposition parties. Reflecting this political reality, the President needs to listen to the opposition and reflect their voices in managing state affairs so as to enlist their cooperation in passing his legislative agenda. Also now when the nation is facing a North Korean crisis, Moon can’t afford to count on his high popularity to browbeat the opposition parties. He should reach out first and create an atmosphere for bipartisan cooperation so as to get the nation united behind him.

The opposition parties should know that they are not winners. They delayed the voting for months by linking the vote with concessions from the ruling party and the President.

Cheong Wa Dae needs to tighten its personnel screening process.

Aside from Kim, five other candidates were nominated by Moon for high-level government positions but withdrawn from consideration after mounting controversies over their qualifications.

The President should refrain from filling key posts only with his supporters or those who share his progressive leaning. After all, he is the president of not just progressives but also all other people irrespective of political stripes. He should act on this fact.