Hwang's faulty leadership

Liberty Korea Party (LKP) Chairman Hwang Kyoahn last week marked his 100th day as leader of the largest opposition party.

To mark the occasion, he posted a message on Facebook, stressing that he will press ahead with reforms to innovate his party. However, it is doubtful how many Korean voters see a difference in the LKP before and after he came to lead the party widely seen as a major culprit in the downfall of former President Park Geunhye, who was impeached for her role in a huge corruption scandal.

Given that he was prime minister and justice minister in the Park administration, many people believe he was not a proper choice to rebuild the party in the first place. In the last few months, his shallow leadership and questionable behavior has justified these doubts about his capacity to be a competent statesman.

During the last few months that he has led the party, Hwang has engaged in a distasteful war of words against the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK). He was seen hanging out with a controversial Christian leader who has made some insane remarks about President Moon Jaein, and over the weekend he got together with ultra conservative novelist Yi Munyol. These encounters have aggravated public discontent over Hwang.

Some veteran politicians, including the Party for Democracy and Peace's Rep. Park Jiewon who was a chief of staff to the late former President Kim Daejung, are criticizing Hwang's arrogance, saying he is already acting as if he was president. Hwang has refused Cheong Wa Dae's proposal of a meeting of party leaders with Moon, and has instead insisted on a one-on-one meeting with the President.

Hwang should take a more humble attitude and accept the President's offer of cooperative politics. He should also focus more on leading his party into an organization that produces effective policy alternatives ahead of general election next year.