"‘Mun’ Probably Knew, Must Clarify Position"
On the 25th, Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, proposed urging President Moon Jae-in’s stance on the final guilty verdict in the case of former Gyeongnam Governor Kim Kyung-soo’s 'Druking comment manipulation scandal,' demanded truth verification through additional investigations, and suggested joint responses by presidential candidates from the opposition parties in the National Assembly party leader meeting room. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, called for President Moon Jae-in to express his position and for further truth-finding regarding the guilty verdict on former Gyeongnam Governor Kim Kyung-soo’s involvement in the manipulation of comments during the 19th presidential election. He also proposed a joint response among opposition presidential candidates to uncover the masterminds behind the incident.
On the morning of the 25th, Ahn held a press conference at the National Assembly concerning the investigation into Kim’s involvement with the Druking case and made these remarks.
He explained the reason for holding the press conference, saying, “I could no longer remain passive while watching President Moon’s shameless silence without a single apology and the Democratic Party’s defense of the crime. I felt it was necessary to strongly raise awareness of the seriousness of the issue again and to eradicate such anti-democratic political manipulations so that they are never attempted again.”
He continued, “With the Supreme Court’s final guilty verdict on former Governor Kim on the 21st, the last presidential election has been recorded in history as the ‘May 9 fraudulent election.’ It was an illegal political manipulation election involving the Druking group and the so-called ‘King Crab’ system, which manipulated and distorted public opinion?a ‘fraud crime against the Republic of Korea.’”
He first criticized President Moon. Ahn said, “Why has the President not expressed any regret or offered even a single apology for such a heinous crime? How much did he know about the comment manipulation scheme orchestrated by the Druking group and former Governor Kim?”
He asserted that President Moon must have known about the situation at the time. Ahn stated, “President Moon, who personally called and praised Lee Sang-ho, a former member of Noh Sa-mo who was arrested on bribery charges related to the Lime scandal, repeatedly saying ‘perfect’ after Lee led the election planning for Busan and Gyeongnam in the 2016 general election, was someone who closely monitored every step of the election process despite not being the party leader at the time. It is inconceivable that President Moon was unaware of the enormous events unfolding in the presidential election, which was even more important than the general election and directly tied to his own fate. It is also unlikely that former Governor Kim, who was among his closest aides and stayed by candidate Moon’s side, did not report this.”
He also held the Democratic Party accountable. He said, “The party could not have been unaware of such a tremendous matter. The Democratic Party must reveal the truth about what they knew and how deeply they were involved.”
He further argued that there are still aspects that need to be uncovered through additional investigations by the prosecution and police. He pointed out “the criminal involvement of the so-called ‘Gyeongin Line,’ a pro-Moon group led by Druking and suspected of direct connection to former Governor Kim’s crimes,” and said, “It must be thoroughly investigated why the President’s wife was desperately calling out ‘Gyeongin Line’ in a gymnasium watched by everyone during the presidential election process, and the reasons must be disclosed to the public.”
Ahn emphasized the need for a thorough investigation into why the Druking case was investigated so belatedly. He also said that additional investigations should determine whether second or third organizations existed beyond the Druking group.
He pointed out the limitations of the special prosecutor law, which prevented investigation into the “real masterminds.” He said, “Who benefited from the criminal proceeds of the crimes committed by the Druking group and former Governor Kim? I strongly urge additional investigations to find the masterminds.”
He proposed uniting the opposition presidential candidates. He said, “Regardless of party affiliation, I propose a joint response among opposition presidential candidates with a sense of solidarity to bring about regime change,” adding, “Any form is acceptable, such as a ‘Joint Countermeasure Committee for Crushing Political Manipulation.’” He explained this as “a joint effort to crush political manipulation and protect the will of the people” and “a collective task to remove obstacles blocking regime change in this presidential election.”
When asked by reporters immediately after the press conference about the “specific plans for the joint countermeasure committee,” Ahn replied, “If opposition presidential candidates agree with my idea, we will discuss together what form would be best.”
Regarding earlier remarks by Democratic Party leader Song Young-gil, who said, “Since state agencies were not involved, this is different from the past National Intelligence Service comment manipulation case,” Ahn criticized, “I do not understand the distinction between crimes committed by state agencies and private individuals. It sounds like saying it is acceptable for private individuals to illegally interfere in elections by breaking the law.”
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