Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik on Wednesday called on government officials to strive to achieve national unity, a key ideal to make the country a better place.

“Our society experiences fast-spreading conflicts among different classes and along generational and ideological lines, which splits public opinion,” Kim said during the government’s kick-off meeting for 2013.

“If we fail to overcome these divisional factors, we will neither be able to achieve the advanced, top-class country status nor win limitless competition in the world.”

How to achieve national unity has become a top priority in Korean society particularly after the Dec. 19 presidential election, in which Park Geun-hye of the conservative ruling Saenuri Party earned 51.6 percent of the vote strongly backed by voters in their 50s and older against 48 percent for her liberal rival candidate favored more by younger generations.

Pointing to the income gap between the rich and poor, and the fast-aging society as major factors for social polarization, Kim pressed for allocating “a limited welfare budget in an even fashion for those in need.”

People in the upper-20 percent bracket earn almost seven times more than those in the lower-20 percent bracket, with top earners spending 28 times more on education, according to government data.

Facing bleak prospects for the global economy, overshadowed by the persistent eurozone crisis, fiscal cliff in the U.S. and the hard landing of the Chinese economy, and tense circumstances on the Korean Peninsula due to North Korea, Kim also asked public servants to remain vigilant and pour their efforts into successfully transitioning to the new government, which is set to launch in February. (Yonhap News)