Recruiting Honorary Professor Kim Dong-gil and Others to 'Expand Presence'
Expressing Determination to Complete Presidential Race
Also Analyzed as Aiming to Increase Stake in Unification Talks
Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate of the People’s Party, visited the home of Kim Dong-gil, honorary professor at Yonsei University in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, on the 20th to offer New Year’s greetings. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group
[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Boryeong] Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate of the People’s Party, has been actively recruiting senior figures one after another. As Ahn continues to expand his faction, there are forecasts that the push for opposition unity with Yoon Seok-youl, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, will become more complicated.
On the morning of the 20th, Ahn visited the home of Kim Dong-gil, Honorary Professor at Yonsei University in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, to request that he serve as the head of his support committee. Professor Kim accepted, saying, "That is a matter for the country." Ahn thus gained the backing of Professor Kim. Kim, a 'conservative elder,' has previously been affiliated with the United Liberal Democrats and the New Korea Party.
Recently, Ahn has been accelerating his recruitment of senior figures. Just two days earlier, on the 18th, he succeeded in recruiting Choi Jin-seok, Honorary Professor at Sogang University, as the Standing Election Committee Chairperson of his Central Election Committee. On the 14th, Pastor In Myung-jin, who served as the Emergency Committee Chairperson of the Saenuri Party and Liberty Korea Party, predecessors of the People Power Party, declared his support for Ahn.
Ahn’s focus on 'bulking up' is interpreted as a demonstration of his determination to complete the presidential race without unification. On the same day, Lee Tae-gyu, General Headquarters Chief of the People’s Party, appeared on MBC Radio and emphasized, "The official position of the campaign is that there will be no unification under any circumstances and that regime change will be achieved under Ahn Cheol-soo’s name."
Even if unification talks proceed, the larger Ahn’s faction becomes, the more complicated the process is likely to be. This is because the calculations change each time a new figure is added regarding the 'shares' inevitably involved in unification discussions. Last year, when a merger with the People Power Party was being pursued, the People’s Party’s nationwide regional committee chair recruitment sparked controversy over 'land-grabbing' demands for shares from the People Power Party side, leading to the merger’s collapse.
Regarding this, Um Kyung-young, Director of the Era Spirit Research Institute, said, "Ahn is recruiting people who help raise his approval ratings and is observing the effects reported in the media," adding, "Based on Ahn’s past behavior, bulking up seems to be a strategy to secure a favorable position in the unification competition rather than aiming to complete the race."
Reporter Kum Boryeong gold@
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