Yoon reaffirms commitment to medical reform in meeting with PPP parliamentary leadership sans Han

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday reiterated his unwavering commitment to the government’s contested medical reform push and urged the ruling party to focus on livelihood issues in the upcoming parliamentary government audit, party officials said.

Yoon made the remarks during a dinner meeting with Rep. Choo Kyung-ho, floor leader of the ruling People Power Party (PPP), and other senior party lawmakers at the presidential office ahead of the two-week parliamentary audit that begins Monday.

The meeting was held in the conspicuous absence of PPP leader Han Dong-hoon, who doesn’t hold a parliamentary seat nor was invited by the presidential office, amid an ongoing power struggle between Yoon and Han.

“Medical reform is absolutely necessary as the society is aging, and regional and essential medical care is collapsing,” Yoon was quoted as saying by PPP spokesperson Rep. Shin Dong-wook.

Yoon also said he hopes to see the upcoming audit sessions prioritize national interests and people’s livelihoods, rather than engaging in political strife with the opposition, according to Shin.

A majority of trainee doctors have left their workplaces since February in protest of the government’s plan to drastically increase the medical school admissions quota beginning next year.

Doctors and medical professors have refused to join a consultative body proposed by the government and the ruling party to resolve the monthslong medical standoff, urging the government to cancel its plan to raise the quota beginning 2025.

The meeting comes hours after Yoon vetoed three contentious bills, including one calling for a special probe into the first lady Kim Keon-hee’s stock manipulation and other allegations.

Yoon needs support from PPP lawmakers to secure enough votes to discard the bills in a revote, which requires a two-thirds majority to override the veto. The PPP holds 108 seats in the 300-member National Assembly.

The ruling party is expected to face an uphill battle in the parliamentary audit to defend against the opposition’s strong offensive on key issues, including the first lady.

The gathering comes at an awkward time as Yoon has stayed mum over Han’s request to have a one-on-one meeting after a group dinner between Yoon and PPP leaders last week ended without meaningful discussions on pressing issues.

The exclusion of Han from Wednesday’s meeting has led to speculation that tensions remain between Yoon and Han, once considered close allies, as the two have displayed wide differences over how to deal with sensitive topics, such as first lady.

On Tuesday, Han claimed that a former presidential aide, who is now an auditor of the state-funded financial institution, allegedly incited a left-wing YouTuber to launch a negative campaign against him ahead of the party leadership election in July.

According to media reports, the auditor asked a reporter at Voice of Seoul to dig up dirt on Han before the party convention, suggesting the first lady would like it.

“I feel ashamed and disappointed about how the public and party members will view this,” Han wrote on Facebook.

Yoon and the PPP are grappling with record-low approval ratings, falling below 30 percent in recent polls, attributable to the prolonged walkout by junior doctors, public discontent over the first lady and friction between Yoon and Han.

In contrast, lawmakers of the main opposition Democratic Party, which holds 171 seats, are putting on a show of unity to support leader Lee Jae-myung as he faces legal proceedings on allegations including election law violations and perjury.