President Park’s birthday present from the opposition party

President Park’s birthday present from the opposition party. February. 03, 2016 07:32. by 차길호기자 kilo@donga.com. The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae finally accepted the orchid (see picture) sent by Kim Jong-in, the interim leader of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea, to celebrate President Park Geun-hye’s 64th birthday on Tuesday after refusing to take it at first.

Kim’s secretary office called the office of the presidential secretary for political on Tuesday morning and said, “We’ll send the president’s birthday orchid around noon.” This followed Kim’s proposal that the party should show something that can make the Korean people happy before the Lunar New Year holidays.

About 40 minutes later, the presidential secretary's office communicated to Kim’s office and said that it would decline the offer politely. “We repeatedly said that we would like to send an orchid in return for the orchid that President Park sent to Moon Hee-sang, our party’s then interim leader, in 2003, " Kim Seong-soo, spokesperson of the Minjoo Party said. "We heard the same comment declining our offer three times.”

After being reported during a luncheon, President Park is said to have chastised Hyun Ki-hwan, her senior secretary for political affairs. “Mr. Hyun declined the offer believing that it is inappropriate to accept it at a time when bills that both the ruling and opposition parties agreed to pass have not been passed,” said Jeong Yeon-guk, spokesman of the presidential office. “After being reported on this, President Park chastised him.” Finally, Cheong Wa Dae agreed to accept the orchid and it was delivered by Rep. Park Soo-hyun, Kim’s chief secretary, to presidential chief of staff Lee Byung-ki after 4 p.m. It is for the first time that the opposition party’s leader sends a birthday orchid to President Park.