Full-scale Battle Over Hwacheondaeyu Between Ruling and Opposition
Consideration of Expulsion and National Assembly Ethics Committee
Representative Lee Jun-seok's Final Ultimatum to Resign from Lawmaker Position
Ruling Party Launches Counterattack Using Fairness Frame
[Asia Economy reporters Koo Chae-eun and Geum Bo-ryeong] Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the People Power Party (PPP), who faced a backlash known as the ‘Gwak Sang-do boomerang’ due to the controversy over his son's 5 billion KRW retirement bonus, sent a ‘final ultimatum’ to Representative Gwak, demanding that he "resign from his parliamentary seat." He warned that if Gwak does not voluntarily resign, procedures for expulsion and referral to the National Assembly Ethics Committee could follow. As the Daejang-dong development special favor allegations, originally targeting Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, turned into a 5 billion KRW retirement bonus issue that backfired on the PPP, the party hurriedly moved to ‘cut ties’ with Representative Gwak. Meanwhile, the ruling camp, including Lee Jae-myung’s campaign, criticized the PPP by targeting ‘Daddy’s chance,’ ‘double standards,’ and ‘unfairness,’ while counterattacking with cards such as ‘guaranteeing fairness’ and ‘recovering development profits.’
On the morning of the 28th, Lee appeared on a radio show and said, "If he does not decide to resign, there will be talks of expulsion or procedures through the National Assembly Ethics Committee." He added, "Regardless of industrial accident claims or whatever, there are parts that the younger generation finds hard to accept. I think Representative Gwak’s explanation is very insufficient." Regarding criticism that the party leadership knew in advance about the receipt of the 5 billion KRW retirement bonus but did not take preemptive measures, he explained, "We need to accurately identify the route through which the information was obtained, so Floor Leader Kim Ki-hyun would have handled it appropriately."
Floor Leader Kim Ki-hyun also said at the party’s floor countermeasure meeting that day, "I feel devastated and heavy-hearted," emphasizing, "If there is any fact of obtaining unfair benefits by using status or power, it must be corrected under any circumstances, which is the consistent stance of the People Power Party." Presidential primary candidates of the PPP are also distancing themselves from Representative Gwak one after another. Former Board of Audit and Inspection Chairman Choi Jae-hyung and Representative Ha Tae-kyung urged ‘Gwak’s decisive action’ and ‘initiation of expulsion procedures,’ respectively, through Facebook on the same day.
At the same time, the opposition is intensifying its offensive by attacking the use of the 550.3 billion KRW that Governor Lee allegedly recovered from development profits. On this day, Jang Ki-pyo, the PPP’s Gimhae-eul district committee chairman, held a press conference and claimed, "Governor Lee forcibly expropriated land, 92% of which was privately owned, to purchase it for Seongnam’s Deul in order to fulfill his first campaign pledge to turn the First Industrial Complex into a full park," adding, "He claimed it was for public interest to complete his private pledge." In fact, Lee Jae-myung’s camp revealed that a significant portion of the 550.3 billion KRW in development profits recovered by Seongnam City was spent on the First Industrial Complex park creation costs (256.1 billion KRW), but the opposition attacks that the First Industrial Complex park project was poorly executed.
On the other hand, Governor Lee and the ruling camp are counterattacking by focusing on the ‘fairness frame.’ They are leveraging the fact that the ‘5 billion KRW retirement bonus’ controversy is provoking outrage among the 20s and 30s generation in the presidential election atmosphere. Floor Leader Yoon Ho-jung said at the floor countermeasure meeting that day, "The 5 billion KRW retirement bonus to Deputy Gwak is seen by the public as a bribe given to the father who was the senior secretary for civil affairs," and directly questioned, "How can we talk about fairness and justice to the frustrated youth generation?" Governor Lee posted on Facebook that day, "The problem is a caste-like reality where my future is determined by my parents’ wealth," adding, "The role of politics and the state is important. We must guarantee fairness of opportunity so that everyone can start from an equal starting line."
Along with this, Lee Jae-myung’s camp is holding a discussion session at the Central Veterans Hall in the afternoon on the same day under the theme ‘How to recover development profits,’ with Governor Lee himself participating. Lee plans to legislate and publicize a national recovery system for development profits triggered by the Daejang-dong allegations. While emphasizing the legitimacy of development projects, he aims to turn the tide by linking this to his campaign pledges.
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