The ruling Grand National Party is teetering on the brink of collapse. On Wednesday, three of the party’s five top leaders quit their posts, calling for reform of the party. The majority party has been floundering in defeatism after losing the Seoul mayoral by-election on Oct. 26.

The collective resignations of the three leaders ― Reps. Yoo Seung-min, Nam Kyung-pil and Won Hee-ryong ― were intended to pressure party leader Hong Joon-pyo to step down.

What motivated the trio to drag Hong down was their acute sense of crisis in the face of an imminent political tsunami. They feared that the reported involvement of a GNP lawmaker’s aide in the Oct. 26 cyber attack against the national election watchdog might wreck the party.

The trio felt that Hong was not the right person to lead the party through the coming political storm. They wanted Rep. Park Geun-hye, the party’s de facto leader, to come forward and take the helm of the party.

Yet Hong refused to quit, saying he would act in a more “responsible” manner. He put himself to a vote of confidence among the party’s lawmakers and won support from them. The lawmakers wanted Hong to remain party boss for the time being and spearhead reforms.

In a press conference, Hong claimed that he had “a roadmap to recreate the party” in a way that would help regain public confidence.

Yet it is questionable if Hong will be able to successfully reinvent the party and shake off the GNP’s image as a party for corrupt politicians and the rich.

The right person for this Herculean task is Rep. Park. Even for her, this would be an uphill battle. In recent months, she has lost much of the gravitational pull she once had on party members.

Only a few months ago, she was regarded as a shoo-in for the presidential election slated for December 2012. No candidate in the opposition camp seemed strong enough to beat her.

Yet this changed suddenly with the emergence of Ahn Cheol-soo, the dean of Seoul National University’s Graduate School of Convergence Science and Technology. Recent public polls put the former software businessman ahead of Park.

Park’s falling popularity means her influence on GNP lawmakers is ebbing. Lawmakers follow a leader who can help them get reelected. If Park remains in the back seat, her influence will further decline and the party may drag itself further into a crisis. Now is the time for Park to come forward and lead the party. This is the only way she can reverse the downward curve in popular support for her.