Leaders of the ruling and main opposition parties made their parliamentary addresses Thursday, each emphasizing his party’s own agenda.

Although the two leaders spoke on the same day, their focus fell on widely different issues.

As with President Park Geun-hye’s policy address on Wednesday, Saenuri Party chairman Rep. Kim Moo-sung concentrated on the economy, reiterating that it was the “golden time” for economic recovery. 

In contrast, the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy’s emergency committee leader Rep. Moon Hee-sang concentrated on political and policy issues, honing in on the administration’s economic, security, foreign affairs and inter-Korean policies.

In his speech, the Saenuri Party chairman cited Germany and the Netherlands’ decisions to scale back welfare, and the failed policies of Spain and other nations that led to high unemployment and low economic growth to call for “sharing of pain.”

“In light of the general crisis Korea is facing, I suggest launching a ‘grand compromise campaign for sharing pain,’” Kim said.

He went on to say that the country must choose between “high burden, high welfare” and “low burden, low welfare,” saying that the purpose of his campaign was to create a nation of “coexistence and coprosperity.”

Linking the idea to reforming the government employees’ pension system, the ruling party leader vowed to push the plans through. Since revealing the reform plans on Oct. 17, the government has been pushing to complete implementing the changes by the year-end, despite strong resistance by the opposition parties.

As for the issue of safety that has engulfed the nation since the April 16 ferry disaster, Kim declared that his party would not compromise on related matters to make the country safer.

As for Moon, he focused on highlighting the shortcomings of policies implemented by the Park administration, and called for amending the Constitution.

“A special committee on constitutional amendment should be launched within the year, so that the amendment can be made before the 20th general election,” Moon said.

He added that the current Constitution was suited for 1987, when amendments were made to enable presidents to be elected through direct election, but that Korean society has outgrown it.

“I believe that it is now time to shed the old clothes of the president-centric system.”

The NPAD leader also highlighted the national and household debt levels that have risen to the 1000 trillion won ($950 billion) range, and said that the current economic policies grouped together as “Choinomics” after Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan had completely failed.

Moon went on to argue that Korea’s diplomatic policies “have lost way” during the two successive conservative administrations, saying that normalization of inter-Korean relations would lay the foundations for improving related matters.

As for the transfer of wartime operational control to Seoul from Washington, and the public sector pension system reform, Moon called for action on one, and more time for the other.

He said that gaining wartime control of Korea’s armed forces was “the true normalization of the abnormal” using the Park administration’s catchphrase, and said that the pension reform required discussions and consensus with concerned organizations.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)