"Merger? My Answer is NO" Kwon Eun-hee... Lee Jun-seok Says "No Interest, Announce Ahn's Position"

People Party to Lee Jun-seok: "We may lack money and organization, but do we lack pride?"
Lee Jun-seok: "You see me as a reckless kid, so you don't get a normal response"

Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the 'Meeting with Gyeongnam Journalists' held on the 3rd at the Gyeongnam Provincial Council's main conference room.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] The tension surrounding the merger issue between the People Power Party and the People’s Party is intensifying day by day. When Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, demanded, "Make it clear whether it’s Yes or No," Kwon Eun-hee, floor leader of the People’s Party, said "No," to which Lee responded, "I am not interested in Floor Leader Kwon’s thoughts."

On the 3rd, Lee wrote on his Facebook, "Why can’t the People’s Party answer whether it’s Yes or No?" and made this statement.

He questioned, "I asked for an answer, but the responses were things like ‘Ahn Cheol-soo’s possible presidential candidacy,’ ‘The People Power Party leader looks like a conqueror wearing a long sword,’ ‘Many people think (Ahn) should run for president,’ and ‘We don’t have money or organization, but we’re not a party without any pride (ga-o).’ Are these normal answers to the question?"

He continued, "Why are they playing the game of telephone politics over such a simple matter?" and emphasized, "I hope Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, clarifies whether he supports or opposes the merger."

Lee also posted again, criticizing, "Because Lee Jun-seok looks like an immature kid rather than a party leader, normal questions don’t get normal answers," adding, "Rather than the cause of the merger or the public’s desire for opposition unification, they are just fixated on Lee Jun-seok. That’s why they openly interfere in another party’s leadership election to bring Lee Jun-seok down, and even now they are calling him an immature kid."

Kwon Eun-hee, Floor Leader of the People Party. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier that day, Lee said on his Facebook, "Looking at the terms and concepts the People’s Party has created in just a few days, they are just repeatedly using their own terms that the public can’t understand to buy time," adding, "What matters is simply whether the merger is a Yes or No, and whether they will meet is also a Yes or No answer."

In response, Floor Leader Kwon said, "Just because we are a party with 103 seats, can we tell a party with 3 seats, ‘No need for other words, just answer Yes or No!’?" She added, "If that’s the perception, the Republic of Korea created by the People Power Party will be a jungle order where only unilateral power exists, and minorities and the weak will have no choice but to submit or be excluded. In that case, my answer is naturally No."

Lee Tae-gyu, secretary-general of the People’s Party, also appeared on CBS’s ‘Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show’ that day and said, "Considering our current party strength, we don’t have money or organization, but we are not a party without any pride (ga-o)."

He criticized Lee’s high-handed attitude, saying, "Mutual respect is most necessary for a merger, but he unilaterally set a deadline. This is a typical gapjil (abuse of power) mindset and attitude."