President Park Geun-hye’s state affairs since February 2013 have been placed under new scrutiny due to irregularities involving her nongovernment confidante Choi Soon-sil’s meddling.
More and more citizens are demanding a closer look into the administration’s unusual actions that have come with unconvincing excuses.
Those include the whereabouts of Park on April 16, 2014, when the Sewol ferry capsized in waters off Jindo, South Jeolla Province, and caused the deaths of 295, with nine missing, out of the 476 passengers.
Maritime police were notified of the accident at around 8:50 a.m. right after the vessel was stranded, and broadcasters like YTN were reporting it live from 9:20 a.m. Though there was about an hour to save all of the passengers, the state-led rescue operations was far from sufficient, apart from irrational practices of Sewol crew members.
President Park should have immediately instructed ministries and state agencies -- including the maritime police, the Navy and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries -- to carry out full-fledged rescue activities so as not to miss the opportunity to save lives before the ship sank.
According to the presidential office's later statements, Park conducted instructions around 10:15 a.m. The Sewol ferry sank at 10:28 a.m.
Two years ago, some media outlets had alleged that Park was not in Cheong Wa Dae at that time, pointing out the absence of the control tower during the emergency. The Chosun Ilbo, in a column, initially raised the question of Park’s whereabouts for seven hours, while Japan’s Sankei newspaper alleged that she was staying with a man outside the presidential office. The stock brokerage sector produced rumors that Park was with Jeong Yun-hoe, the ex-husband of Choi Soon-sil, at a private residence in downtown Seoul.
Any alibis should prove Park’s whereabouts and what she was doing for seven or eight years from 10 a.m. (or from 9 a.m.) to 5 p.m. After the ferry accident, she made her first official appearance around 5:15 p.m. with some irregular comments.
Cheong Wa Dae dismissed the rumors and news reports. It stressed that Park was at the presidential office. A secretary noted: “She takes care of state affairs not only at her official office, but also at the presidential residence.”
The issue has come to the fore again with a fresh suspicion that Choi could have meddled in decision-making, allegations of which include that Park might have been waiting for advice from Choi on the day the Sewol sank.
Further, there is a supposition among some that the tardy rescue activities were related to religious activities.
We find little ground to put trust in these sort of rumors at the present stage. Still, Park and Cheong Wa Dae have yet to publicize her movements on that tragic day. The office has adhered to the position that it has no obligation to make such details public.
Nonetheless, Park and her presidential aides have the responsibility at least to explain to the public why Park made no instructions until 10:15 a.m. (that is the time specified by Cheong Wa Dae), just as the vessel was about to plunge underwater.
The prosecutors have only grilled the Japanese journalist who reported on Park’s disputed whereabouts. Now the investigative agency will have to resolve public suspicion as to whether or not the belated countermeasures against the ferry accident were to do with Park’s private involvement with Jeong, Choi or others.
As the Sewol issue is not a current investigation target of prosecutors in their probe of Choi, who has been placed under custody, there is a need for the National Assembly to include it as an agenda item in a planned parliamentary investigation of the Park Geun-hye scandal.
Park expressed the willingness to be cooperative with the prosecution or independent counsel’s investigation into her, if necessary, during her second apology to citizens on Friday.
If she has integrity in becoming a probe target and wants to face any scrutiny sincerely, there is no reason for her not to accept the National Assembly-led investigation into the administration.
The president mentioned nothing concerning the parliamentary probe in her TV apology, and citizens are watching as to whether she and the embattled ruling Saenuri Party will accept the proposal from the three parliamentary opposition parties.
Time is almost up.
