Rep. Kim Kwang-lim, chairman of the Saenuri Party Policy Committee  (Photo:Rep.Kim Kwang-lim’s office

Three political parties have appointed each party’s top policymaker Rep. Kim Kwang-lim, a three-time lawmaker from the Saenuri Party, lawmaker-elect Kim Sung-sik of the People’s Party, and Rep. Byun Jae-il of the Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK). 

Rep. Kim Gwang-lim, a lawmaker hailing from Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do, who ran as Chung's running mate of the Saenuri party’s new floor leader Chung Jin-suk, was elected chief of the party's policy committee. Kim, a two-time politician of the People’s Party, has been elected from the Gwanak A electoral district in Seoul. Rep. Byun of the MPK was appointed as the chief of the party’s policy committee on May 11. 

The public limelight is on how the three top policymakers will iron out differences to address the pending hefty issues under the current three-way party structure. The ruling Saenuri lost its majority in the National Assembly in the April 13 parliamentary elections and the opposition splinter People’s Party, jointly headed by Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, has become the kingmaker in the parliament, shifting the Korean political paradigm from the conventional two-way system to a tripartite one. The three have been considered as rational minds who have carried out parliamentary activities based on logic . Rep. Kim of the Saenuri Party and Rep. Byun of the MPK are classified as a moderate conservative and a centrist, respectively. Chairman Kim of the People’s Party is considered as a moderate liberal. 

Each party’s policy committee chairman plays a role in coordinating and determining party policies as the No. 2 party politician. The chairman controls up to 50 staffers, including secretaries, policy committee officials and experts, who are all under the umbrella of the policy committee. The chairman is in the floor leader line of succession, and he or she participates as a member of the Supreme Council, each party’s top decision-making body. Rep. Kim of the ruling Saenuri Party heads the party-government consultation committee. 

Rep. Kim of the Saenuri Party is considered as one of the party’s renowned economic experts as he served as a ruling party leader of the Special Committee on Budget & Accounts of the 18th and 19th National Assembly, and he also sat on the chairman of the Special Committee of the Budget & Fiscal Reform of the National Assembly. He held such positions as the vice minister of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance; president of Semyung University; and chairman of the Saenuri Party Yeouido Research Institute. 

Rep. Kim was elected as an independent from Andong, Gyeongsang-buk-do, before joining the Saenuri Party. He also served as a lawmaker in the 18th, 19th and 20th National Assembly. Rep. Kim likes to lend an ear to public opinions. Born in Andong, he obtained a bachelor’s degree in economics from Yeungnam University, a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard University, and a doctorate degree in public administration from KyungHee Univesity. 

As for the controversy of the effectuation of the so-called former Rep. Kim Young-nan Antigraft Act, Saenuri Policy Committee Chairman Kim insists that some adjustments be made on giving gifts on traditional holidays. Under the law, public position holders are banned from being treated to a meal worth more than 30,000 won and receiving a gift worth more than 50,000 won. Farmers and livestock growers claim the law would devastate their industries. 

People’s Party Policy Committee Chairman Kim, who was reelected from the Gwanak A Electoral District, is a close confident of People’s Party co-Chairman Ahn Cheol-soo. While serving as a member of the Strategy and Finance Committee of the 18th National Assembly, Rep. Kim was praised for releasing his parliamentary report containing a sharp criticism of government policies and alternative options of which then-MOSF Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun spoke highly.

Rep. Kim, a graduate of Busan High School, earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Seoul National University. He held such positions as the head of the policy department of the Federation of Korean Chemical Workers’ Unions, the deputy governor of Gyeonggi-do, a lawmaker of the 18th, 20th National Assembly, and the chairman of the Hannara Party 2nd Policy Coordination Committee. He is spearheading policymaking for the People’s Party after joining the party. 

Rep. Byun of the MPK is a four-time lawmaker. He passed the 16th high administrative examination and served as the vice minister of the now-defunct Ministry of Information and Communications, a lawmaker of the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th National Assembly, and the chairman of the Democratic Policy Research Institute of the MPK. MPK Policy Committee Chairman Byun is classified into a member of a faction not aligned with followers of former president Roh Moo-hyun. He served as the chairman of the policy committee of the predecessor of the MPK.