Yoon Seok-yeol "Withdrawal of Recruitment? Difficult to Speak Hypothetically"
No Jae-seung, Co-Chairman of the People Power Party Election Countermeasures Committee. / Photo by YouTube channel 'Oh Se-hoon TV' capture
[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] No Jae-seung, co-chairman of the People Power Party's joint election countermeasures committee, who previously sparked controversy for advocating positions such as the 'May 18 Democratic Movement Special Act' and 'abolition of regular employment' on social media, has now been revealed to have disparaged Baekbeom Kim Gu by calling him a "person who killed people."
On August 15, No shared a post by a 'Pen & Mike' reporter on his Facebook, which stated, "Liberation Day without a founding president, calling it Founding Day. I think North Korean Kim Il-sung would be laughing out loud. I will introduce some lesser-known anecdotes about President Rhee Syngman."
When a comment was added to the post saying, "Today, Kim Won-woong (Chairman of the Liberation Association) said 'Rhee Syngman was a pro-Japanese regime.' I wonder when that anti-Japan obsession will disappear," No replied, "The fact that Kim Won-woong can say such things is itself something to be thankful to Rhee Syngman for. Kim Gu is a person who killed someone just because the gukbap (soup with rice) was served late, haha."
This refers to the incident in March 1896 when Kim Gu killed Tsuchida Josuke, a Japanese army lieutenant disguised as a Korean, at a tavern in Chihapo, Anak County, Hwanghae Province. After killing him, Kim Gu left a proclamation stating, "I killed this Japanese to avenge the assassination of the national mother (Empress Myeongseong)" along with his residence and name.
Additionally, in May, No shared a YouTube video titled 'The Truth of May 18' on his Facebook, writing, "The number one sanctifier of the Republic of Korea. That movement which even passed a special law to block any debate. What on earth are they trying to hide?"
In June, he said, "As an advocate for abolishing regular employment, I sometimes think about what it would be like if the president adopted the slogan 'Opening the era of zero regular employment.'"
On the 5th of last month, he shared a post disparaging poverty. The post stated, "I really hate people who were born poor and flaunt it. Being poor leaves many grudges. But they exploit that. It's really petty," which sparked controversy over 'poverty disparagement.'
People Power Party's presidential candidate Yoon Seok-yeol is speaking at the "Yoon Seok-yeol Presidential Candidate Invitation Meeting" held on the 8th at the Jaegyeong Gwangju Jeonnam Hometown Association meeting room in Seocho-gu, Seoul. / Photo by Yonhap News
Regarding this, candidate Yoon stated, "(No Jae-seung) was appointed as co-chairman of the joint election committee based on recommendations from many people because he is a young self-employed person, representing two points: youth and self-employment. I heard that the election committee is currently reviewing all the statements he made as a private citizen."
On No's past remarks about the May 18 Democratic Movement and Baekbeom Kim Gu, Yoon said, "I don't think it's necessary for me to comment on what someone says," and when asked about the possibility of withdrawing his recruitment, he replied, "It's difficult to speak hypothetically."
Meanwhile, on the 8th, No said in a YTN interview, when asked if there had been any discussion about resignation within the party, "I just finished recording the party's platform with party officials and am on my way back," adding, "If I have to step down as co-chairman because of past remarks, then candidate Lee Jae-myung should also step down as presidential candidate because of his past remarks."
He added, "There is nothing among what I said that cannot be explained. I can sufficiently clarify everything."
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