"Twice-a-Year CSAT" Followed by Daily Presidential Pledges
Plans to Resign as Daegu Mayor and Move to Seoul This Week
Hong Jun-pyo, the mayor of Daegu who has expressed his intention to run for president, proposed on the 7th the abolition of the Constitutional Court and the reform of the constitutional adjudication system. This follows his proposal for reforming the entrance examination system on the 6th, showing a pattern of releasing presidential pledges day after day.
On the same day, Mayor Hong wrote on social media (SNS), "Let us abolish the Constitutional Court, which has become a symbol of political strife and conflict, and increase the number of Supreme Court justices by four to establish a constitutional tribunal within the Supreme Court."
Mayor Hong raised the argument that the Constitutional Court is useless. He stated, "When the 1987 Constitution was enacted, the German-style Constitutional Court system was introduced, but due to political influences in its composition, the Constitutional Court has failed to perform its proper function and has always been at the center of political strife," adding, "Candidates with extreme ideological views have also appeared as constitutional court justices, spreading the notion that the Constitutional Court is ineffective."
He continued, "The Supreme Court reaches conclusions based on legal logic, but the Constitutional Court often reaches conclusions first and then fits legal logic to those conclusions, significantly undermining the credibility of its rulings."
He then said, "It is time to change the constitutional adjudication system," and identified "the abolition of the Constitutional Court, which has become a symbol of political strife," as the top priority to consider during constitutional amendments.
The day before, Mayor Hong also announced his first presidential pledge via SNS, saying, "We need to change the entrance examination system," and proposed, "Let’s hold the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) twice a year and simplify the college admission system so that students can enter universities with their better scores."
This week, Mayor Hong plans to resign from his position as Daegu mayor and move to Seoul to set up his primary campaign headquarters. On SNS the day before, he conveyed his intention to resign from the mayoral office during the week, stating, "With a joyful heart toward my last dream, I am heading to Seoul to pursue that dream," thereby announcing his presidential candidacy.
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