Yoon vows to relocate presidential office to downtown Seoul

Yoon Suk-yeol, the presidential candidate of main opposition People Power Party, speaks during a press conference about his politics reform pledges, held at the party headquarters on Seoul's Yeouido, Thursday. Joint Press Corps

Lee pledges to fix development gap in provincial cities

By Jung Da-min

Yoon Suk-yeol, the presidential candidate of the main opposition conservative People Power Party (PPP), vowed on Thursday to relocate the presidential office, pledging that he would reshuffle it to make it a smaller but more effective team to handle state affairs.

Meanwhile, his rival, Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the ruling liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), visited the southwestern city of Gwangju, a stronghold of the ruling bloc, to appeal to the hearts and minds of voters there. Among his other pledges, Lee promised the balanced development of the local provinces, addressing the gap in development between Seoul and other cities across the nation.

"If I get elected, the current organization of Cheong Wa Dae will disappear. Instead, a new concept of the presidential office with a whole new organization and decision-making process will be introduced," Yoon said during a press conference to unveil his campaign pledges on political reform, held at the party's headquarters in Seoul.

Yoon said that the presidential office will be relocated to the government complex building near Gwanghwamun Square and that the current "Cheong Wa Dae will be returned to citizens."

"It could be used as a history museum or a public park. The decision of how it might be used will be made based on consensus between the public and experts and would require discussions on how to use the symbolic site," he said.

Yoon spoke out against what he referred to as the "imperial presidency," vowing to be an interactive president who actively engages with citizens.

"To be an interactive president, I think we need to purge the bad practices of the imperial presidency. The president should be subject to the rule of law and should do his or her own job," he said, adding that with its current strong presidency, the nation is doomed to fail in containing crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

He also vowed to create a small but effective team with a group of selectively chosen people.

Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the ruling liberal Democratic Party of Korea, speaks during a press conference about his pledges for Gwangju and other South Jeolla Province regions, held at Gwangju Airport, Thursday. Yonhap

Meanwhile, the DPK's Lee pitched his campaign pledge concerning the balanced growth and development of provincial cities, during his visit to the southwestern city of Gwangju.

He pledged to relocate the airport in the city and create smart city industrial complex in the current site.

The ruling party candidate also vowed to stipulate the spirit of the 1980 May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement in the Constitution, which had also been a pledge of the Moon Jae-in government.

"Gwangju is the heart of the Republic of Korea's democracy. I will make the pride of Gwangju the pride of the Republic of Korea," Lee said. "I will stipulate the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement in the preamble of the Constitution and establish it as part of the great history of the Republic of Korea that no one can damage or deny."

The May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement has often been a sensitive political issue, as some conservative politicians have made disparaging remarks against the victims and their bereaved family members.

Lee also vowed to accelerate the Gwangju Airport relocation project to help the local economy. "I will support the smart city project at the airport site so that there are more facilities where the new technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution can be realized," Lee said.

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