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President Roh Moo-hyun
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High ranking staff sent packing after failing to curb real estate speculation
Contradicting earlier assertions that he would "not change a horse rider during a time of war," President Roh Moo-hyun has replaced a high ranking staff member and two others have resigned. The three had spearheaded the "war" against real estate speculation and caught flak for the ineffectiveness of their policies in curbing precipitious housing price rises. On October 14, the presidential office announced it would replace Construction Minister Chu Byung-jik, who offered to resign for failing to curb sharp increases in real estate prices. The move comes along with the resignation of Lee Baek-man, senior presidential secretary for public information, and Chung Moon-soo, a presidential economic policy advisor. Their replacement does not guarantee a breakthrough in the government’s real estate policy. On the contrary, the conditions could worsen, as experts raise concerns that the reshuffle could represent further chaos in the government’s efforts in dealing with national affairs. President Roh currently faces a myriad of daunting tasks. It would be tough to curb the ever-rising housing prices but no less tough to push through reform bills on the judicial system, military, and labor rights, all of which have been gathering dust at the National Assembly. In other words, the president has lost his leadership in pushing through government policies. With the confirmation of Constitutional Court chief nominee Chon Hyo-suk being delayed, observers say that president Roh is also losing his sole authority in choosing with whom he will work. All of this is typical of a lame duck president. A rift is also widening between President Roh and the ruling Uri Party, the latter seeking political alignment away from the president, who suffers from rock-bottom approval ratings. This will serve yet another blow to the president, whose term is nearing an end. Blue House chief-of-staff Lee Byung-wan dismissed the concerns, saying, "President Roh will keep his grip on government affairs, including the real estate issue." The Blue House is the one which has to take full responsibility for this ’crisis,’ since its grip on the management of national affairs has been loosening. For example, the government has showed an inconsistent stance in its anti-speculation polices, coming up with stop-gap measures responding to the ups and downs of the market. This inconsistency has caused the public to lose trust in the government, dealing a blow to its efforts to keep the housing prices under control. The government has also failed to read the market and the people before the crisis surfaced. Experts say this is an outcome of Cheong Wa Dae’s "closed" and "arrogant" attitude in managing national affairs. It has closed its eyes to people’s opinions in the policymaking process. "The crisis-management system of Cheong Wa Dae has virtually collapsed," said Rep. Min Byung-doo of the Uri Party. "Its closed nature resulted in a communication breakdown between the government and the people." Some, however, point out that the current crisis can also be blamed on excessive criticism of the government by the main opposition Grand National Party (GNP) and some conservative media. Case in point is that these groups showered the government with a barrage of criticism only because some officials were found to have apartments in the Gangnam district, a hotbed of real estate speculation. The GNP has unveiled its own real estate policies including a further reduction of taxes on high-priced properties, but even some sources within the party claim that the measures will benefit only the rich. As the presidential election is slated for late next year, the conservative party is poised to ramp up its efforts to neutralize policies pursued by the Roh government. In the process, debate on which measures are effective will give way to political bickering, and the overall state of national affairs, it is feared, will be one of directionlessness.
