Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday took a step closer to announcing his anticipated bid in the upcoming presidential election, by calling for constitutional revision and bashing his key opposition rival over national security issues.

During his speech at a debate hosted by the Kwanhun Club, an association of senior journalists, the former top diplomat underlined the need for “national integration,” a term frequently quoted by presidential aspirants.

“Our country should stop the infighting and achieve national integration so as to take a new step for development,” Ban said.

“This is the spirit and justice which I believe we should realize through this presidential election.”

The former UN chief official, who returned to his home country on Jan. 12, has yet to make his official announcement, but is largely deemed the strongest candidate to represent the conservative camp.

While speculations lingered on whether he would join the newly launched conservative Bareun Party, Ban reportedly leaned toward remaining on his own, without joining any specific party for the time being. 

Ban especially paid focus to denying the suspicions that his presidential aspiration was based on personal ambition.

“Having served as UN secretary-general, I have no personal greed for any specific position,” he said.

“It is only to change our politics, to take our country to a higher level and to renew hopes for our people that I have decided to give my all.”

Calling for a “change in politics,” the conservative figure contrasted himself to Moon Jae-in, former chairman and presidential front-runner of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea.

Moon’s core pledge is to achieve a “change of government” by ending the 10-year conservative governance and marking the start of a new progressive government.

Ban also criticized Moon’s weaknesses, especially disputes concerning his views on national security.

“The people are nervous over (Moon’s national security policy),” Ban said, pointing to what he saw as his rival’s ambivalence over inter-Korean issues.

For instance, Moon’s vow to visit Pyongyang before Washington, once he becomes president, is in discord with the recently tense inter-Korean relations, according to the former top diplomat.

Ban also claimed that Moon has been toing and froing over the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system here, an issue which has been raising debates with neighboring China.

Meanwhile, he also highlighted his 10-year experience in the international organization, his extensive network with foreign leaders and diplomatic skills, in an apparent move to appeal to the centrist-conservative voter pool.

“My 10 years in the UN have taught me how an unqualified leader may ruin the country and the people,” he said.

Calling for fundamental change, Ban asserted the need to revise the nation’s basic law so as to divide the current president-centered system and to achieve a balance in state powers.

“The constitutional revision should take place before the presidential election,” he said.

“We have so often witnessed presidents who make vows for constitutional revision but these peter out later, once they take power.”

Despite growing anticipation on his imminent presidential bid, Ban has recently seen a fall in his approval ratings, an apparent blow from the bribery charges involving his brother and nephew.

A survey conducted by R&Search from Sunday to Monday showed that Ban’s approval rating stood at 18 percent, lagging far behind Moon’s 34.8 percent rating, which has kept the lead for 14 weeks straight.

By Bae Hyun-jung (tellme@heraldcorp.com)