“I knew at the Mun interview, there are so many things that the president cannot do”

At 10 am yesterday, 20 reporters wearing masks were sitting in the Cheongwadae Chunchugwan, and after that, 100 reporters were waiting for the president’s press conference with images on a large screen that filled the wall. It was the first conference since the press conference on January 14 last year, just before the new coronavirus infection (Corona 19) began in earnest. The Blue House YouTube channel, which I entered to watch the interview, emits a heart-shaped message of support that appears in real time in the chat window on the right side of the screen. Some would have watched it on the air, some would have watched it on the Internet, and many would not have time to watch an interview because they were working on their jobs.

The press conference, which ended in more than two hours, left discussions on numerous issues. The secretary’s office tried to divide it into three major areas: quarantine and society, politics and economy, and diplomacy and security, but reporters’ questions did not follow that order. Probably, it was an urgent opportunity that came after a long time, so I could not have asked questions according to the field. The questions began with the’amnesty issue’ and proceeded to deal with a wide variety of issues, from the conflict at the prosecution to the questions of foreign reporters on North Korea policy.

Aside from all the details of detailed issues here, the first question that comes to mind is why such a press conference has never occurred in the past year. The past year was also a time when all the people suffered excruciatingly without exception due to problems in all areas of life caused by Corona 19. The President said that the opportunity for communication like this has been postponed until now due to Corona 19, but I think that it should have been more active communication because of Corona 19. From now on, I hope to have such opportunities for communication in a wider range. Isn’t such communication the president’s duty rather than “a time to answer the people’s curiosity”?

Among the President’s words, the most striking scenes were moments when he admitted his limitations. Real estate prices were insufficient due to the rapid increase in the number of households last year, and disaster support was insufficient only by the government’s financial role, and the success or failure of the North Korea policy was ultimately determined by the policy priorities of the new biden government. Awareness of. It was a remarkable experience to hear through the mouth of Sae Sam that the president could not do much in the conflict between the Minister of Justice and the Prosecutor General, which is the president’s own authority, from pardon. In short, yesterday’s press conference was also a talk about the limits of what the President can do.

Is there a position filled with endless expectations as the President of Korea? This can be seen by looking at the list of endless requests posted on the Blue House National Petition bulletin board. From petitions for dissolution of political parties to impeachment of judges in certain judiciary, to appeals raised by suffering youth, middle-aged and old, respectively, expectation of the omnipotent influence that the President wants to exert in every area of ​​economy, politics and life. Are left intact. Unfortunately, however, most of the petitions left on the bulletin board are beyond the capabilities of the president.

Wasn’t that the reason the president’s silence over the past year? What the President can do in inverse proportion to that endless anticipation and early confidence in power is that it is a slow and frustrating process, like going through the mud, and that sometimes policies lead to unexpected results. Where Corona 19 caused citizens to suffer, expectations for what the state can do have only skyrocketed, but there will not be much that can be said in the meantime from a position that cannot come up with a simple answer.

Some will call it an excuse, but I think the awareness and recognition of what you can and cannot do is an important starting point. The fact that the President does not have all the answers with unprecedented power, and that even if it is not a 100-point answer but an 80-point answer, sincere efforts and communication are more intimate and desperately needed for citizens’ hearts. I hope yesterday’s press conference will be the beginning, not the end of such efforts.

Park Won-ho Professor, Department of Political Science and Diplomacy, Seoul National University