[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-seop] Jo Eung-cheon, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, publicly demanded a clear statement from the next leadership regarding the controversy over text message bombings by hardcore party members.
On June 1, a day before the party convention, Jo stated on Facebook, "The next leadership should clearly express their position on the overrepresentation of passionate party members."
He continued, "When signs of reflection on our camp's unfairness appeared openly, coordinates were marked, text message bombings were sent, and they were ultimately silenced. The party leadership went further and defended the text bombings with flowery language to conceal our unfairness," criticizing the leadership.
He added, "The party has become one team, one voice, and the result is a gap between public opinion and party opinion, and a defection of public sentiment."
He also pointed out, "In this debate, double standards and hypocrisy are emerging. It has gone beyond 'what's the problem' to even saying that text message bombings are 'a good thing.' Among those defending the text bombings while emphasizing freedom of expression and the responsibility of elected officials, some have responded to critical columns about themselves with lawsuits."
He criticized, "In parties where party democracy does not function properly, the active text actions of passionate party members are very likely to be overrepresented in the process of forming party opinion. Party opinion will be distorted and eventually diverge from public opinion."
Meanwhile, addressing party members, he appealed, "To the passionate party members, please lower the volume a little and tone down the tone a bit. As you know, I am a minority and have neither the power nor the intention to block your voices," adding, "Please do not misunderstand my sincerity. My argument is a sincere strategic proposal for winning the presidential election."
Regarding Floor Leader Yoon Ho-jung, Jo said, "I hope Leader Yoon will find a way to hold face-to-face party meetings under thorough quarantine procedures," and criticized, "Online party meetings are unsuitable for gathering consensus as they only allow one-way communication without interaction or physical contact, which diminishes the willingness to speak."
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