[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, distanced himself from Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, regarding Lee's call for constitutional amendment on the 19th, saying, "I believe the people will make a good judgment."
After visiting a guide dog school for the visually impaired that day, Yoon expressed a cautious stance on the constitutional amendment during a meeting with reporters. He said, "The issue of constitutional amendment concerns the constitution, which is above all laws in our country and a symbol of national unity. It requires the consensus of the people and careful consideration," adding, "If there is any initiative or will from the people regarding constitutional amendment, it can be discussed anytime, but with the presidential election just around the corner, I am not sure how the people will judge the sincerity of such talks."
Yoon said, "If they wanted to push the constitutional amendment issue closer to the presidential election, they had many opportunities during the party primaries as the ruling party with 180 seats," and added, "With the election so close and various situations unfolding, I just heard it and found it somewhat unexpected." He continued, "The direction of the constitutional amendment discussing the power structure seems to be about reducing presidential powers," and questioned, "How will the people judge the idea of extending the five-year presidential term to eight years?" He concluded, "I do not want to comment on candidate Lee's call for constitutional amendment, but I believe the people will make their own judgment."
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