Jeon Yeo-ok on Ahn Cheol-soo's National Pressure Interview: "Ahn, Serious from Start to Finish... Also Showed Sense of Humor"

Jeon Yeo-ok Attends National Pressure Interview Panel
"Ahn Cheol-soo Was Full of Conviction"

Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, who declared his candidacy for the presidential election. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Jeon Yeok, former Saenuri Party (predecessor of the People Power Party) lawmaker, shared her impressions after conducting a pressure interview with Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People Party, who declared his presidential candidacy.

On the 2nd, Jeon posted on her Facebook, "I made a rare visit to Yeouido today as a panel for the 'pressure interview' organized by the People Party," and opened by saying, "The title of today's pressure interview was 'If Ahn doesn't come in, we will invade.'

She said, "The pressure interview was very exciting. Ahn responded calmly and sincerely," adding, "However, he also showed a previously unseen sense of humor."

She continued, "He found it quite difficult to answer questions related to the past 'Druking' manipulation incident," and conveyed, "He said that the day after achieving the 'Golden Cross' (surpassing in approval ratings), the portal comments turned hostile all at once, which caused him great distress, so he went for a marathon. He said he pushed his body to the extreme and was able to recover," she relayed.

The Druking comment manipulation incident involved Kim Dong-won, who used the pseudonym 'Druking,' and his associates manipulating public opinion on portal sites using a macro (automatic input repetition) program called 'King Crab' to favor President Moon Jae-in and the Democratic Party ahead of the 19th presidential election in 2017. Regarding this, Jeon added, "I will not go into detail about the evil behavior of the Democratic Party."

Jeon Yeo-ok, former Saenuri Party (predecessor of the People Power Party) lawmaker. [Image source=Yonhap News]

She also praised, "(Ahn) was serious from beginning to end, sincere from beginning to end," and said, "And he was confident." She added, "When asked 'Who do you think that person is?' regarding the Daejang-dong development scandal, he summarized it in a single word: 'Lee Jae-myung.'"

Meanwhile, Jeon also shared a conversation she had with the makeup artist in the dressing room before appearing on the pressure interview broadcast that day.

She said, "When I asked about Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party candidate, the makeup artist said, 'It seems the makeup team always accompanies him.' When I said, 'It looks like a very expensive dye,' they replied, 'Yes, that's right,'" adding, "I thought to myself, 'It's a disguise to hide a chilling nature like in Face/Off.' How on earth did such a candidate become the ruling party's presidential candidate?" she criticized.

Finally, Jeon emphasized, "I hope Ahn Cheol-soo firmly 'pressures' Korean politics."

Earlier that day, Ahn underwent a pressure interview for about 90 minutes from interviewers including Jeon as a presidential candidate. In the interview, when asked, "Which is a priority, regime change or completing the presidential race?" Ahn answered, "Regime change is the priority," adding, "Among the candidates now, I am the only one who can achieve regime change and a change of era."