South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday effectively jettisoned her prime minister-designate, caving in to mounting calls to withdraw the "unilateral" nomination, which aggravated a political deadlock sparked by a corruption scandal involving her confidante.

    During her rare visit to National Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun, Park called on the legislature to recommend a new premier candidate, who she said will "control" the Cabinet as demanded by opposition parties. "I came to meet the speaker as it is (my) great responsibility to normalize state affairs," she told Chung during their meeting that lasted only for some 10 minutes amid a rally by opposition lawmakers clamoring for her resignation. 

    "If the National Assembly recommends a new premier, I will appoint him and let him control the Cabinet." On Wednesday, Park tapped Kim Byong-joon, chief policy advisor to the late liberal President Roh Moo-hyun, as new prime minister in a government reshuffle aimed at placating escalating public anger over the political scandal involving Park.

    The surprise designation came without consulting political parties, drawing intense criticism from opposition parties, which have demanded that a new premier be picked based on bipartisan agreement.

    During her talks with Chung, the embattled president urged the legislature to muster up efforts to overcome economic challenges, pointing to sluggish exports and the fallout from the ongoing restructuring of the shipbuilding and shipping industries.

Source: QNA