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Gyeonggi Province after returning from Latin America

After completing her tour of four countries in Latin America with a visit to Brazil, President Park Geun-hye departed from Sao Paulo, Brazil, early in the morning of Apr. 26 and arrived at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province on the morning of Apr. 27. While the Blue House asserts that Park achieved clear results on the 12-day trip - her longest since becoming president - the political situation at home during her absence was a chaotic series of crises.

Beginning with the controversy about Park’s decision to leave the country on the first anniversary of the Sewol disaster, each day new allegations were raised in connection with the Sung Wan-jong list, and Prime Minister Lee Wan-koo announced he would resign, leading to a critical power vacuum in government. When Park returned to her desk, it was covered with a bigger pile of problems than at any time in the past. Perhaps because of these numerous problems, Park was sick throughout her trip, with swollen tonsils, a high fever, and a stomachache. Park received a health checkup on Monday and all of her appointments for the day were cancelled.

Now that Park is back, Lee Wan-koo is expected to step down from his position either today or tomorrow. The Blue House has already been acting on the assumption that Park will accept Lee’s resignation, and it is likely to wrap up the issue before the by-elections are held on Apr. 29.

“When the decision is made to dismiss Lee Wan-koo, the dismissal ceremony will be held immediately,” a source at the Prime Minister’s office said on Apr. 26. After stepping down, Lee will probably focus on preparing for the prosecutors’ investigation as a member of the National Assembly.

During the prosecutors’ investigation, Lee will have to answer questions not only about allegations that he received 30 million won (US$27,870) from Sung Wan-jong, former chairman of Keangnam Industries who recently committed suicide, but also about the claim that he tried to have close associates destroy circumstantial evidence and look into the status of the investigation on his behalf.

If the prosecutors’ investigation turns up direct or indirect evidence backing up the allegations against Lee and he is officially charged, he will likely find himself in an even bigger political dilemma than he is now. While he would not have to immediately step down from his position as lawmaker, he would have a long battle to wage in the courts.

Depending on how the investigation plays out, there is even the possibility that Lee could be arrested and detained - the worst possible scenario for him. In that case, Lee might have to give up his plans of running in the general election in April 2016, since it would take more than a year for the Supreme Court to render a final decision on his case.

Even if his case is pending, Lee can still try to make a political comeback by running for the National Assembly next year, but he is unlikely to run at all if he is behind bars.

Park will probably wait to nominate the next prime minister until she sees the results of the by-election on Apr. 29. Park is planning to confront the Sung Wan-jong scandal head on by pushing for audits in every corner of society, including sweeping investigations by the prosecutors.

Since any ethical problems with Lee’s successor would inflict a fatal blow on the Park administration, anyone who could conceivably be caught up in a scandal will probably be kept off the list of candidates.

From the time that Lee resigns until the appointment of his successor, Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Choi Kyoung-hwan will be in charge of the prime minister’s responsibilities.

On Apr. 26, Lee remained sequestered in the prime minister’s official residence in the Samcheong neighborhood of Seoul for the sixth day in a row.

By Son Won-je, staff reporter in Sao Paulo and Seok Jin-hwan, Blue House correspondent

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