SEOUL: South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol (pic) will skip the ceremony marking the opening of parliament, the nation’s first leader to do so in more than three decades, in a sign of the bipartisan strife that casts a shadow over the government’s prospects for achieving key policy initiatives.
Yoon has decided to skip the event that begins Monday (Sept 2) at 2pm, citing the opposition’s "unilateral actions” to push for special counsel and impeachment procedures, South Korea’s Yonhap News reported, adding that it would be the first such instance since 1987. An official at the presidential office confirmed the report.
Yoon’s absence signals more headwinds to come as his administration pushes for a number of pro-business policies.
In July, South Korea announced a raft of proposed tax benefits, including a cut to one of the world’s heaviest inheritance levies, as it seeks to boost stocks and stimulate an economy under pressure from aging demographics and slowing consumption. The changes need approval by the opposition-controlled parliament.
President Yoon has little room to manoeuvre for the remaining three years of his single, five-year term after April parliamentary elections through which the opposition bloc led by the progressive Democratic Party increased its majority. Yoon’s approval rating was at a three-month low of 23% in a weekly Gallup Korea tracking poll released Friday.
Policies being pushed by the Democratic Party include a 13-trillion won (US$9.7 billion) plan to extend cash handouts to households as a way to boost flagging consumer demand.
Yoon has rejected the idea, saying it would spur inflation and strain the budget. The Democratic Party has also sought legislation to start an investigation of Yoon’s wife, Kim Keon-hee, after a secretly recorded video that showed her receiving a Dior handbag surfaced several months ago.
Yoon and Kim have denied any wrongdoing, though the president apologized in May for causing concern to the public for his wife’s "unwise behavior.”
Monday’s ceremony takes place a day after the leaders of the rival parties met over the weekend in a rare attempt to seek cooperation on pending bills.
They agreed to launch a policy consultative channel but failed to narrow the gap on key issues such as abolishing the capital gains tax or providing cash handouts. - Bloomberg
