Nearly 4 out of 10 people believe discussions about revising the Constitution should begin no earlier than next year, a poll showed Monday, as the topic has reemerged as a political issue.

An amendment to the Constitution, last revised in 1987, would likely touch on the sensitive issue of changing the single-term, five-year presidency to a four-year term with the possibility of re-election.

More than 38 percent of adults surveyed on Thursday, however, said that a constitutional debate should begin no earlier than next year, according to polling agency Realmeter.

Those who said that the debate should begin this year accounted for 31.9 percent.

The survey, conducted on 500 adults nationwide, had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.

South Korea introduced the single-term presidency in 1987 after decades of autocratic rule by military-backed presidents. The system was primarily aimed at keeping the president from attempting to hold on to power through illicit means.

President Park Geun-hye, during the 2012 presidential campaign, promised to push for a revision to the presidential term.

On Monday, however, she expressed clear opposition to the idea of a constitutional debate, saying now is the time for the National Assembly to focus on bills aimed at reviving the slumping economy.

The Assembly was normalized last week following a months-long stand-off between rival political parties over the terms of a bill aimed at determining the truth behind April's ferry sinking that left more than 300 people dead or missing. (Yonhap)