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No more improvising for ills of sports world

Posted April. 11, 2015 07:10,   

한국어

There’s something that I felt while interviewing lawmaker Lee Ailesa. It seems that I found “the correct answer for proportional representation system” or I almost got the answer.

If a lawmaker for a local district means a politician who represents “the local district (constituency),” the intended responsibility of a lawmaker from the proportional representation is to take additional “functions” on top of the duties given to local district lawmakers. With the exception of the former Chun Doo-hwan administration when the proportional representation system was first introduced, however, that primary intent has never been fulfilled in making official nomination for lawmakers.

During the 16th National Assembly, Kim Un-yong, a bigshot in the world of sports and commissioner of International Olympic Committee, served as a lawmaker elected by proportional representation of the Millennium Democratic Party. He, however, was more of an "administrator whose specialty in athletic” or a politician, rather than an athlete itself. Other than that, most of the sports figures in the National Assembly were those who served head positions in athletic organizations.

Few were loyal to intended “functions” of proportional representation as lawmaker Lee Ailesa. When applying for the nomination of proportional representation for the Saenuri Party, she was at the 9th place. The then-presidential candidate Park Geun-hye gave her 11th place for the proportional representation, which is a telling sign of how she trusted in Lee Ailesa. Back in 2012, Lee contributed to making Park`s athletic-related pledges.

“From physical education of middle and high schools, colleges of physical education to Korea National Training Center, all these were formed under the late President Park Chung-hee and the incumbent President Park Geun-hye, since childhood, has grown with the interests in the development of physical education. “Was it because of irrationality underneath of the world of sports?” was what the president said when the scandal of Ahn Hyun-soo broke out. I think it’s fair for her to say such a thing as it tells that she knows what the rooted problems are. Government agencies, however, try to improvise long-needed measures, which is why president Park repeats what she has been saying.”

One year to go as a lawmaker, Lee Ailesa seems to feel very busy in the mind.



chang@donga.com