Politicians drag feet in revoking candidate nomination for local election

Politicians drag feet in revoking candidate nomination for local election. October. 22, 2013 07:51. .

A pledge by ruling and opposition parties to nullify a candidate nomination system for mayors and council members of municipal governments is effectively going up in smoke, even though they promised the measure as part of their campaigns to reduce lawmakers’ privileges.

Voices opposing the revocation of the system are rising at the ruling Saenuri Party, which has been delaying adoption of the measure as its party platform. The main opposition Democratic Party, which already adopted the revocation of the system as its party platform, is facing mounting internal opposition, failing to present specific follow-on measures. The parliamentary Special Committee on Political Reform, in charge of discussing this issue, wrapped up its activities last month without reaching a conclusion.

In a telephone interview with The Dong-A Ilbo, a key official of Saenuri’s floor leadership said, “If this current mood persists, it will likely be difficult to nullify the system for party nomination of candidates for local elections.” A key official of another party also said, “A general meeting of party members is needed to revoke the system. But it will more likely be voted down if the bill is submitted as an agenda item. Hence, we are in limbo as to what to do with the pledge.”

Lawmakers who are opposed to the revocation of the nomination system, said “If the system for parties to nominate candidates for local elections is annulled, a minimum process to verify the eligibility of candidates will disappear, and elections will become a blind vote, in which voters will cast ballots only based on candidates’ names and profiles.” However, not a few critics suspect that the parties seek to keep their privilege intact due to worries over the possibility that lawmakers may see their influence on their constituencies wane.

The leaders of both the Saenuri Party and the Democratic Party cannot afford to openly raise issue with this matter, and only internally agonizing, because the parties enlisted the revocation of the nomination system as one of their pledges during last year’s presidential election. As both parties continuously delay decision-making on the issue, some critics say that parties make conclusion on the matter before the end of the regular session of the National Assembly. Saenuri Party lawmaker Rhee In-je said at a joint meeting of the party’s prominent lawmakers last Wednesday that “It is very chaotic in local regions,” adding, “Let’s select our party platform first, and conclude the issue by the end of the regular assembly session through negotiations with the opposition parties.”

With 67.7 percent of its members in support of nullification, the Democratic Party adopted the bill to revoke the system at its general meeting in July, which is now waiting to see Saenuri’s stance. A senior official of the Democratic Party reportedly requested Saenuri’s floor leadership “not to adopt the revocation of the system as a party platform.” Discussions over the revocation of party nomination have all but disappeared from official meetings of the Democratic Party’s leadership since long ago as well.

Analysts say the Democratic Party is keeping silence over the issue because it vividly experienced the danger of revoking the party nomination system for local election during its recent off-National Assembly struggle. Commenting on a significant drop in the ratio of local councils’ members, including members of city and ward councils who attended his party’s outdoor rallies, a Democratic Party lawmaker from a constituency in the Jeolla provinces said, “City council members, who would proactively participate in all different events due to their wariness about party nomination, are very reluctant to follow demand of the party leadership, since the party adopted the revocation of the nomination system as its party platform.”

Some in the political circle mention a measure to revoke the system for parties to nominate candidates for local council members, while maintaining the system to nominate candidates for local government mayors. A source at the Saenuri Party said, “In rural areas, most people know who are running in elections, and it would be necessary to consider revoking party nomination of local election candidates starting with those areas.”