[Summary] "Is the nuclear document 'v' not VIP?" Oh Se-hoon's claim... ruling party says "Are you an aspiring comedian?"

Controversy Surrounding 'v' Letter in Ministry of Industry Public Document
Ruling Party Criticizes "Interpreting 'v' in Version as VIP, Increasingly Absurd"
Candidate Oh Says "Regretful That My Position Caused Confusion"
"Core Issue Is Whether President Was Briefed"

On the 2nd, Oh Se-hoon, the preliminary candidate of the People Power Party running for the Seoul mayoral by-election, held a meeting with figures from the performing arts and theater community at the Korea Headquarters of the International Association of Theatre for Children and Young People in Jongno-gu, Seoul. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] Oh Se-hoon, the People Power Party's preliminary candidate for the Seoul mayoral by-election, claimed that the letter 'v' used in a report document on North Korea's nuclear power plant construction project released by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy was an abbreviation for 'President (VIP),' drawing strong criticism from the ruling party.

On the 2nd, Oh pointed out on his Facebook post that the titles of the documents released by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, '180514+Bukhanjiyeokwonjeongeonseolchujinbang-an_v1.1.hwp' and '180616_Bukhanjiyeokwonjeongeonseolchujinbang-an_v1.2.hwp,' differed in part of their titles.

In particular, Oh referred to the letter 'v' at the end of the titles, saying, "We commonly refer to the president as VIP," and emphasized, "Ultimately, those involved in the government must know what 'v' refers to and what meaning it holds within the government."

However, the ruling party immediately pushed back against Oh's claim. They pointed out that the letter 'v' in the file titles simply stands for the document version initial.

Kang Seon-woo, spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Korea, criticized in a briefing that day, "'v' is claimed to be the 'v' in 'vip' referring to the president," adding, "The level of suspicion raised by the former Seoul mayor and current People Power Party preliminary candidate for Seoul mayor is so pathetic and absurd that it is hard to know where and how to start explaining."

He continued, "If what former Mayor Oh says is true, then tens of thousands or even hundreds of millions of documents are being prepared nationwide and worldwide to report to President Moon Jae-in," sarcastically criticizing, "At this point, it's hard to tell if he is a preliminary candidate for Seoul mayor or an aspiring comedian."

Park Jumin, Member of the Democratic Party of Korea / Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

Democratic Party lawmaker Park Jumin wrote on Facebook, "Has former Mayor Oh never done any document work?" and pointed out, "Anyone passing by and asked would know that 'v' stands for version."

He added, "The post written by former Mayor Oh on Facebook makes one worry that he has never done practical work like document handling despite running again for Seoul mayor," and criticized, "No matter how much the People Power Party is enjoying fake news and conspiracy theories these days, this is just too much."

Woo Sang-ho, a Democratic Party lawmaker and preliminary candidate for the Seoul mayoral by-election, also said, "Interpreting the 'v' for version as 'vip' is 'increasingly ridiculous,' which is what should be said here," and sarcastically remarked, "If so, does V3 mean candidate Ahn Cheol-soo is running for the presidency three times?"

Amid the growing controversy, Oh wrote again on Facebook, "I have received many opinions that it is correct to see it as version. I regret that this caused confusion about my position," admitting the mistake.

However, he emphasized, "That does not change the essence of the problem," and added, "My position on nuclear power plant support for North Korea, that is, my request for the president to clarify the facts directly to resolve public suspicion, remains unchanged."

He further added, "The essence of the problem is whether the president received a report on this document or not."