Lee Jae-oh: "If Na Kyung-won and Oh Se-hoon were to become mayors, it would have happened long ago. Overall, they are lacking."

"Park Young-sun, Not Appearing Fresh... Woo Sang-ho, Low Recognition"

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Lee Jae-oh, Standing Advisor of the People’s Party, gave a harsh evaluation of the Seoul mayoral candidates from the People Power Party, including Na Kyung-won and Oh Se-hoon, as well as candidates from both ruling and opposition parties, saying expressions like "they should have become mayor long ago."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 27th, Advisor Lee appeared on KBS Radio's "Kim Kyung-rae's Strongest Current Affairs" and said, "The two (Candidate Na and Candidate Oh) are people who have already been politically evaluated, aren't they?" He added, "They have served as members of the National Assembly multiple times, have been mayors, and have run for mayor before, so if those people were going to become mayor, it should have happened long ago." He trailed off, saying, "Politics can develop a lot over time, so I can't be too hasty in judgment, but honestly..."

Regarding his harsh evaluation of candidates from his own party, he said, "If they feel disappointed, that’s their feeling," but added, "Overall, they are somewhat lacking to be entrusted with Seoul City."

He also gave similarly harsh evaluations of the Democratic Party’s Seoul mayoral candidates, Park Young-sun and Woo Sang-ho. He said, "Candidate Park has already been vetted once," and "Politically, she doesn’t seem very innovative." About Candidate Woo, he said, "He said he wouldn’t run for the National Assembly if he loses the mayoral race, so his will to become mayor is strong," but criticized, "His recognition is too low."

Advisor Lee expressed regret about the unification of opposition candidates. Regarding the proposal by Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, to open the opposition primary platform, he said, "It should have been accepted properly," and added, "Whether it’s the People Power Party candidate or Leader Ahn or anyone, since the People Power Party is the organizer, everyone should participate in selecting the unified opposition candidate. The proposal to eliminate preliminary candidates and narrow it down to about four or five, then hold a final public primary to select the candidate was the right approach."

He criticized, "Kim Jong-in, Emergency Committee Chairman of the People’s Party, is dreaming that since the People Power Party’s approval rating is rising in Seoul, if the People Power Party candidate, Leader Ahn, and the Democratic Party candidate face off, the People Power Party candidate will win, but that’s a pipe dream."