Jang Seongcheol, Jeju Provincial Party Chairman, Claims "Appointment of Heo Hyangjin as Provincial Party Chairman and Governor Won Heeryong's Intent to Control Provincial Party"
Han Giho, Central Party Secretary-General, States "Verification of Petition on Provincial Party Issues, Discussion of Accident Party Designation at Supreme Council"
On the 24th, Jang Seong-cheol, Chairman of the Jeju Provincial Party of the People Power Party, held a press conference. (Photo by People Power Party Jeju Provincial Party)
[Jeju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Chang-won] Amid ongoing internal conflicts and noise over the position of the People Power Party Jeju Provincial Party Chairman, a resolution is expected to be reached sometime next week.
It is anticipated that once the results of the Jeju Provincial Party audit conducted by the central party secretariat are reported to the Supreme Council, a decision will be made on whether to designate the party as an emergency management party.
According to the People Power Party Jeju Provincial Party on the 29th, the plan was originally to elect the next provincial party chairman within this month, but the process was put on hold after the central party secretary-general ordered a suspension on the 13th.
In response, Jang Sung-chul, Jeju Provincial Party Chairman, held a press conference on the 24th expressing his inability to understand the central party’s decision to halt the provincial party chairman election.
He also raised suspicions that the postponement of the provincial party convention was intended to appoint an outsider, former Jeju National University President Heo Hyang-jin, as the Jeju Provincial Party Chairman, and voiced concerns about Governor Won Hee-ryong’s intention to control the provincial party.
Follow-up statements from party members and comments from Chairman Jang Sung-chul have continued up until the previous day.
Former Jeju National University President Heo, who has been mentioned as a candidate for the next provincial party chairman, denied the claims and rumors, stating, “I received a direct recruitment proposal from Jeong Byeong-guk, the head of the talent recruitment committee, and we met at a location in Seoul, but the reports about the provincial party chairman offer have been excessively exaggerated.”
Jeong Byeong-guk, head of the talent recruitment committee, said, “To expand the centrist base, we met with several figures and made recruitment proposals. Former President Heo is definitely a person worth recruiting,” adding, “Heo previously served as the sponsor chairman for Assemblyman Song Jae-ho of the Democratic Party. He is someone who helped the Democratic Party but became disappointed with the Moon Jae-in administration, so he is even more someone we should recruit.”
Regarding the internal conflicts within the Jeju Provincial Party, Han Ki-ho, secretary-general of the People Power Party, pointed out, “While the People Power Party nationwide increased its membership by 38,000 last month, the Jeju region actually saw a decrease,” criticizing the low activity level of the Jeju local party chapters.
He also explained, “Many petitions concerning issues within the Jeju Provincial Party and scandals involving local party chairpersons were received. To verify these, we conducted both official party audits and unofficial undercover audits, and a significant portion was confirmed to be true, which led to the suspension of the provincial party chairman election,” adding, “To confirm the facts, we verified through various channels including residents, party members, and village chiefs.”
Furthermore, he emphasized, “Next Monday, the central party Supreme Council will be reported the results of the Jeju Provincial Party audit and will decide whether to designate it as an emergency management party. If it is concluded to be an emergency management party, several candidates will be included as potential provincial party chairpersons and the Supreme Council will decide again.”
In this regard, a close aide to Governor Won Hee-ryong strongly denied allegations of interference in the Jeju Provincial Party chairman election, saying, “With the presidential candidate primary upcoming, we must be cautious in all matters. Why would there be any benefit in interfering with the Jeju Provincial Party chairman election?”
Jeju=Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Chang-won captain@asiae.co.kr
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