(EDITORIAL from the Korea Times on Nov. 3)

'Sejong City' dispute: Change of original plan should be based on consensus

Concerns are growing over the Lee Myung-bak administration's decision-making
process over its explicit bid to undo the previous government's project of
building an administrative town in a central provincial region. The attempt has
come to the surface since Lee appointed Chung Un-chan, a liberal economics
professor at Seoul National University, as prime minister in late September.
Chung is in the vanguard of those trying to scrap the so-called Sejong City
project which was approved by the National Assembly in 2005 under the rule of
late President Roh Moo-hyun. The project is designed to promote balanced regional
development by relocating nine government ministries and four other agencies to a
new town in Yeongi-Gongju, South Chungcheong Province, which is expected to be
completed in 2012.
President Lee has implicitly expressed his intent to make changes to the Sejong
plan although he backed it during his presidential campaign in 2007. But he seems
to have gone back to his previous position against the relocation. While serving
as Seoul major between 2002 and 2006, Lee was a staunch opponent of the plan. He
is now giving the impression that he is trying to renege on his promise after
winning the election and taking office.
The real problem is that Prime Minister Chung is on a collision course with
President Lee's rival faction in the governing Grand National Party (GNP) which
is headed by former party Chairwoman Park Geun-hye. This indicates that the
government is seeking to dismantle the project without making any efforts to
reach a consensus on the issue with the GNP. The Lee administration has
repeatedly stressed the need for better communication with the ruling party as
well as the public. But it is still under criticism for unilaterally making
policies.
Rep. Park has made it clear that she is against the revision of the new town
plan, saying that it is a ``matter of political trust.'' She said, ``This is an
issue that could determine the fate of the party.'' She added that if the GNP
fails to deliver on its promise, the party will never be able to make any
promises again to the people. Chung countered that it is a matter of a national
agenda which is far more important than political trust. But Park is unwavering
in her firm position in favor of the relocation.
In the eyes of the people, the Lee administration is still poor at building a
consensus within the governing party over major policy directions. It is hard to
expect a democratic decision-making process from the government and the GNP. The
party, which is now led by Lee's faction, is taking a lukewarm attitude, without
setting a clear policy line on the issue. On Monday, President Lee vowed a
``prudent posture'' on revising the Sejong project in the wake of his party's
defeat in last week's parliamentary by-elections.
Most of all, the government and the GNP should first hold close consultations to
resolve the discord between Chung and Park. And then they have to seek public
understanding about their finalized policy toward the relocation plan through
dialogue and persuasion. They should no longer try to get people to feel tired of
power politics and partisan struggles. Otherwise, they can never regain public
trust.
(END)