[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Hong Joon-pyo, an independent lawmaker, said on the 15th regarding the mixed opinions within the People Power Party about his reinstatement, "I hope it will be resolved naturally." Kim Jae-seop, an emergency committee member of the People Power Party, criticized this by saying, "After the person who went out returns, the party's average 'kkondae-ryeok' (old-fashioned authoritarianism) will increase by 10 percentage points."
On the same day, Hong opened his statement on his Facebook post by saying, "It is the day marking one year since the general election ended," and added, "I have no intention of resolving the reinstatement issue by confronting the party."
He pointed out, "So-called faction bosses support reinstatement, but a few members of certain minority factions are implicitly opposing it, contrary to their boss's thoughts," and "Even though the emergency committee has ended, some close aides brought in by the former emergency committee chairman have not resigned and remain opposing the reinstatement."
He continued, "In a situation where even outsiders call for unification and recruitment, if you block the return of your own family member who was temporarily out, party members and the public will not tolerate it," adding, "Yeomnyangsetae (炎凉世態)." 'Yeomnyangsetae' refers to the attitude of flattering and following when in power but treating coldly when power declines.
Earlier, on the 11th, he criticized some lawmakers opposing his reinstatement, saying, "During the presidential candidate primary, if they opposed me and worked in other candidate camps, that would be fine, but is there any reason to oppose even my entry, as I am the main figure of Korean conservatism?"
Regarding this, Committee Member Kim expressed opposition, saying, "The reinstatement issue should be considered from the perspective of party reform and development rather than personal greed."
Through his Facebook, he said, "Seeing that some still casually use the outdated idea of so-called faction bosses and reduce lawmakers directly elected by the people to passive entities acting under boss orders, it is obvious ('myeongyakgwanhwa') that the party's average kkondae-ryeok will increase by 10 percentage points after the person who 'went out' returns." 'Myeongyakgwanhwa' means something as clear as seeing fire.
At the emergency committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 12th, Kim also pointed out, "Hong is pushing for reinstatement under the pretext of creating a healthy competition ring and opening the party's doors wide for greater harmony, but this pretext is very weak."
He said, "In a 21st-century democratic party, it is natural and welcome for various politicians to gather and voice diverse opinions," but added, "The term 'harmony' does not suit Hong."
He further criticized, "When Hong was the party leader during the 2018 local elections, our party failed to unify and suffered the most disastrous defeat in history," and "In the 2017 presidential election, the party failed to unify with candidate Ahn Cheol-soo, who was the people's hope, opening the prologue to divisive politics."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
