Meeting with President Moon
Refutes criticism of silence on Cho Kuk incident, saying 'I cannot agree'
Emphasizes distortion of focus on livelihood issues
[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] "It is problematic to view bringing up the Jo Guk issue in front of the president as a form of ‘reflection.’"
First-term ruling party lawmakers are being criticized for not voicing ‘harsh truths’ to President Moon Jae-in during a meeting on the 3rd, including mentioning the former Minister of Justice Jo Guk incident. In response to such criticism, the first-term lawmakers argued that they ‘cannot agree’ with it. They said the original intention was distorted, as they chose to focus on pressing livelihood issues rather than raising burdensome topics in the current political climate.
Ko Young-in, chairman of the first-term lawmakers’ group ‘The Mincho’ of the Democratic Party of Korea, said in a radio interview on the 4th, "Didn’t Representative Song Young-gil announce all the details, including the Jo Guk incident, on the 2nd?" He added, "The atmosphere is now shifting toward the ruling party focusing on policy alternatives rather than dragging out such issues."
Previously, with the publication of former Minister Jo’s memoir, the Democratic Party was sharply divided into ‘pro-Jo Guk’ and ‘anti-Jo Guk’ factions. In response, Representative Song officially apologized on the 2nd for the controversy surrounding Jo’s children’s college admissions, temporarily putting out the fire. The point is that there was no reason for first-term lawmakers to bring up this issue again in front of the president, but it was not a situation where they ‘could not speak to the president.’
Jang Cheol-min, who was criticized by hardline party members as one of the ‘five first-term traitors’ after mentioning the ‘Jo Guk incident’ along with lawmakers Oh Young-hwan, Jeon Yong-gi, Jang Kyung-tae, and Lee So-young, also appeared on the radio and said, "I have doubts about whether continuing to talk about former Minister Jo is meaningful."
Lawmaker Oh Young-hwan said at the ‘Better Journalism Forum’ held the previous day, "We do not think we failed to voice harsh truths," adding, "There were many candid opinions expressed on real estate, fairness and housing stability for youth, and issues facing self-employed and small business owners." Lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi also emphasized, "We must now move forward to the future, not dwell on the past."
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