First Schedule After Candidate Registration: Visiting Kim Dae-jung's Grave
"Political Crisis Failing to Take Responsibility for People's Livelihoods"
Lee Jae-myung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea who declared his candidacy for party leader, is writing in the guestbook after visiting the grave of President Kim Dae-jung at the National Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak-gu, Seoul on the 18th. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] Lee Jae-myung, a leading candidate for the party leadership of the Democratic Party of Korea, visited the grave of former President Kim Dae-jung as his first schedule after registering as a candidate, stating, "I will definitely build a winning Democratic Party following the path opened by President Kim Dae-jung."
On the 18th, Lee posted on Facebook, "I visited the grave of former President Kim at the National Cemetery. In this era of crisis where the lives of the people are threatened, the first person who came to mind as I ran for party leader was former President Kim."
He said, "The greater crisis we face is the political crisis of failing to take responsibility for people's livelihoods," adding, "The person in charge of crisis response is nowhere to be seen, and the ruling party is engrossed in political strife instead of people's livelihoods. Our Democratic Party must unite and present solutions to livelihood issues and fulfill the political duty to protect the lives of the people."
He continued, "There is an answer in the life of the giant," saying, "The 'scholar's sense of problem and merchant's practical sense' emphasized by former President Kim is exactly the 'livelihood-centered reformist pragmatism' line that I always talk about."
He also said, "As the leader of a strong opposition party, I will set the Democratic Party straight as the party of the working class and middle class, and as the supreme commander for overcoming the crisis, the path taken by former President Kim, who overcame the unprecedented IMF economic crisis, is the path the Democratic Party must follow," adding, "Even in the midst of crisis, he laid the foundation for a welfare state, fostered future industries such as IT and venture businesses, and established the cornerstone of a cultural powerhouse. Only with such competence can the Democratic Party be reborn as a new hope."
Lee said, "I will boldly follow the path opened by former President Kim," and "Just as former President Kim did, I will fully dedicate myself to building a winning Democratic Party."
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