President Lee Jae-myung stated today (the 14th), "Our campaign pledge and consistent stance has been to amend the constitution by changing the presidential term to a four-year second-term or consecutive-term system to enable responsible politics through mid-term evaluations, while strengthening local autonomy and the basic rights of the people."

In a post uploaded to his social media account this afternoon, President Lee explained, "My official position during the 2022 presidential election was that if a term reduction is necessary to carry out such a constitutional amendment, I am willing to accept it, and my view remains unchanged today."

President Lee first prefaced his remarks by saying, "The majority of the public agrees that our 40-year-old Constitution is outdated and needs to be amended, and if an amendment is actually carried out, it is desirable for the specific details to be determined in the National Assembly through bipartisan agreement."

At the same time, he added his opinions: "Enshrining the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement and the Bu-Ma Democratic Struggle in the preamble of the Constitution, and adjusting the powers of the president and the parliament by transferring some of the presidential powers criticized as being imperial—such as the jurisdiction over the Board of Audit and Inspection, the recommendation power for the prime minister, and some personnel appointment powers—to the National Assembly..."

In particular, President Lee noted, "A dual executive system or a cabinet system is neither desirable nor feasible in light of public opinion," adding, "Claiming that decentralizing some presidential powers to the National Assembly is a decentralized presidential system or a cabinet system is a misunderstanding."

It appears that President Lee directly posted his message to dispel misunderstandings as controversy continued after a Blue House official conveyed his stance earlier in the day, leading to claims in political circles that he was "pushing for a constitutional amendment for a cabinet system."

Earlier in the morning, a Blue House official met with reporters regarding the direction of the power structure amendment pursued by President Lee, stating, "We believe that a four-year consecutive-term presidential system with strengthened parliamentary powers has the highest level of public acceptance," and adding, "We sympathize with the problems inherent in the imperial presidential system."

The official went on to explain, "Since the goal is to complement the limitations of the imperial presidential system with a consecutive-term presidential system, it is not a cabinet system," and "It does not specify or refer to a decentralized presidential system or the like."

The official also added, "Because constitutional amendment is a matter that requires the consent of 200 or more seats in the National Assembly, it is desirable for it to be discussed and promoted in the National Assembly," and "The president's principle is that constitutional amendment requires a consensus-driven approach."

(Photo provided by the Blue House Korea Press Photographers Association, Yonhap News)