The main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP) formed an emergency leadership committee Wednesday, three weeks after experiencing defeat in the presidential election, and unanimously endorsed Moon Hee-sang as an interim leader at a meeting of executives and lawmakers.
The five-term legislator, who will front the liberal party until a new chairman is elected at the party’s national convention, probably in March, pledged strong commitment to reform the party and make it fulfill its responsibility as the largest opposition party.
Critics raised doubts over whether he is best suited to lead the party now, saying his selection was the result of a compromise to patch up a post-election factional rift. Given that Moon is maintaining harmonious relations with President-elect Park Geun-hye, he is expected to be helpful toward a smooth launch for the new administration.
Moon is tasked with addressing the aftershock of his party’s crushing election loss and making preparations ― without a hitch ― for the party convention so that a new leadership can carry out reforms and look for ways to get the embattled party out of its current crisis.
But his most urgent task is to find the cause of the election defeat thoroughly and objectively so that the opposition party can seize an opportunity to retake power five years later through collective soul-searching and across-the-board innovation. Moon must look back humbly on what caused the majority of the electorate to turn their back on the main opposition party.
But it’s easier said than done. The DUP has been mired in an extreme factional strife over who should be responsible for the humiliating loss. Moreover, the conflict may erupt again at any time as the party investigates the cause of the defeat and makes rules for the convention. In a word, a rough voyage awaits him.
In retrospect, the DUP failed to keep up with the people’s call for change and innovation while being overly preoccupied with a misguided equation of political engineering ― the opposition never fails to win the election if its candidates are unified. It was like presenting empty slogans for democracy and government change for voters desperately in need of a substantial blueprint that could improve their livelihoods.
It’s pointless if the DUP continues to complain of its demographic disadvantage in elections amid the nation’s rapidly aging population and for that matter, the party is devoid of hope. The DUP must reform itself from top to bottom and make utmost efforts to restore confidence by getting closer to the people.