[Edaily Reporter Kong Chi-Yu ] With President Lee Jae-myung officially mentioning a four-year two-term system and a four-year consecutive-term system as potential directions for restructuring the power structure in the event of a constitutional amendment, attention is focused on the background behind these remarks and the future direction of the discussion. Opposition lawmakers reacted sharply to the Blue House’s mention of the four-year two-term system, with some demanding, “President Lee should declare himself that he will serve only one term.”

On the afternoon of the 14th, President Lee stated via his X (formerly Twitter) account, “A dual-executive system or a parliamentary system is neither desirable nor feasible in light of public opinion,” adding, “It is a misunderstanding to think that a decentralized presidential system or a parliamentary system involves partially devolving presidential powers to the National Assembly or other bodies.”

He added, “My campaign pledge—and my consistent position to date—is to amend the Constitution to change the presidential term to a four-year term with the option of re-election or consecutive terms, thereby enabling accountable politics through midterm evaluations, while strengthening local autonomy and the fundamental rights of the people.”

President Lee emphasized, “My official position during the 2022 presidential election was that I would accept shortening the presidential term if necessary to achieve constitutional reform, and that view remains unchanged today.”

Earlier, Kim Tae-ho, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, told the media that during a golf outing with President Lee last month, when he proposed the need for a constitutional amendment to establish a decentralized power structure, President Lee expressed strong agreement and stated, to the effect that “I believe we must amend the Constitution even if it means shortening my term.” In response, some in political circles interpreted this as a sign that President Lee might be considering a reorganization of the power structure toward a decentralized model, such as a responsible prime ministerial system or a semi-presidential system.

In response, the Blue House drew a clear line that day, stating, “A decentralized presidential system does not refer to any specific power structure.” A Blue House official said, “We agree with the problems inherent in the imperial presidential system,” adding, “We believe a four-year, two-term presidential system with strengthened National Assembly powers has the highest level of public acceptance.”

The opposition parties strongly opposed this direction, calling it a “ploy to extend power.” Jang Dong-hyuk, leader of the People Power Party, posted on his social media that day, “The Blue House’s position on constitutional amendment is that ‘we agree with the problems inherent in an imperial presidential system,’” adding, “That is certainly not something President Lee Jae-myung should be saying.”

Chairman Jang wrote, “Has there ever been an imperial president like President Lee in our history?” adding, “He has completely dismantled the Republic of Korea’s judicial system in an attempt to avoid his own trial.” He emphasized, “The prerequisite for constitutional amendment is simple: President Lee just needs to declare that he will serve only one term.”

Chairman Jang remarked, “The public doesn’t trust him because he refuses to do something that simple yet harps on constitutional reform at every opportunity,” adding, “I hope he will set aside his futile ambitions and focus on the ministries responsible for people’s livelihoods.”

Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon called a constitutional amendment led by President Lee—for whom his own “get-out-of-jail-free card” takes priority over the national interest—a “dangerous constitutional amendment,” explaining, “This is because there is a very high likelihood that, at some point, he will slip in provisions for re-election or immunity to avoid punishment.”

Rep. Han wrote, “President Lee claimed there is broad public support for his constitutional amendment proposal, but it is bizarre to talk about public acceptance while pushing through the abolition of supplementary investigations—which he ignored even when the majority of the public opposed it—and real estate tax hikes.” He added, “We cannot join hands with President Lee, whose hands are caked with filth from actions like the dismissal of indictments and the ban on supplementary investigations, to bake a cake.”

Park Chung-kwon, chief spokesperson for the People Power Party, also stated in a commentary that day, “President Lee must stop his ‘term extension’ ploy amid this national governance disaster,” adding, “What the current administration urgently needs is not political calculations regarding a restructuring of the power structure, but a reflection on its failures in governing the nation.”