Kim Seong-won Referred to Ethics Committee... Joo Ho-young Administration Faces Immediate Crisis from the Start

At the Flood Damage Recovery Site
"Hope for Rain to Bring Good Sand"
Today’s National Apology Press Conference

Goal to Announce Emergency Committee by 16th
Secretary-General and Spokesperson Also to Be Appointed

Positive About Kwon Seong-dong Joining Emergency Committee
"Communication with the Parliamentary Faction Is Also Necessary"
Growing Negative Voices Within the Party

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporters Hyunju Lee, Boryeong Geum, Hyunji Kwon] Joo Ho-young, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, announced plans to refer Assemblyman Kim Seong-won, who made a gaffe at the flood damage recovery site, to the party’s Ethics Committee. The formation of the emergency committee is set to be completed by the 16th.

On the 12th, Chairman Joo told reporters at the National Assembly, when asked about the emergency committee appointments, "We are considering various candidates and combinations," adding, "We are aiming for around the 16th." He also said, "We will announce the appointments for the Secretary-General, party spokesperson, and the vacant Yeouido Research Institute director positions together."

The Joo Ho-young emergency committee has faced difficulties from the very start without a single day free of setbacks. Following former leader Lee Jun-seok’s injunction request to suspend the emergency committee system on the 10th, a gaffe occurred at the flood damage recovery site, the committee’s first official schedule, on the 11th. Additionally, there is strong opposition within the party regarding Floor Leader Kwon Seong-dong’s ex officio participation in the emergency committee, and the possibility of a meeting with former leader Lee has also diminished.

To manage the situation, Chairman Joo decided to push for referring Assemblyman Kim Seong-won, who made the gaffe by saying, "I hope it rains a bit so the photos come out well," during volunteer work at the flood damage site the previous day, to the Ethics Committee. Kim held a public apology press conference at the National Assembly that day. Chairman Joo said, "It was an utterly incomprehensible remark that caused controversy, and it is a disgraceful situation where I cannot face the public and party members," adding, "We cannot avoid going through the Ethics Committee process."

Joo Ho-young, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, is volunteering for flood recovery in the basement of a building in Sadang-dong, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, which suffered heavy damage due to heavy rain on the 11th. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group

Regarding Floor Leader Kwon’s participation in the emergency committee, Chairman Joo appeared to have reached a positive conclusion despite the party’s interpretation that the floor leader is not an ex officio member according to party rules. Chairman Joo said, "Communication with the floor leader, who holds the position, is necessary, and there must obviously be someone representing the assembly members, so I think it is almost like an ex officio position." He had said two days prior that he would "consider it," but changed his stance.

However, negative voices are growing within the party. They argue that the person responsible for causing the emergency committee system should not participate as a member. Ahn Cheol-soo, a candidate for the next party leadership, expressed on the radio that day, "Wouldn’t it be a better way to solidify firm leadership by gaining trust once more at the assembly meeting?"

Shin In-gyu, former full-time deputy spokesperson of the People Power Party, is speaking at a large debate hosted by "Restoring the People Power Party" (Gukbasae), attended by party members supporting Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, at a cafe in Yeouido, Seoul on the 8th. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

Lee Ho-geun, Director of Planning and Coordination at the People Power Party, explained, "Since the emergency committee replaces the supreme council functions, it can be seen that the floor leader and the policy committee chairman are ex officio members of the emergency committee, but there is no provision making it a mandatory rule," adding, "It is up to the emergency committee chairman to decide." Chairman Joo left room for consideration, saying, "I will listen to opinions through the assembly meeting."

A meeting with former leader Lee is expected to be difficult. The day before, Lee posted on his Facebook a photo of a banner on the ruined building’s outer wall that read, ‘Our restaurant is open as usual,’ with the caption, ‘It takes 2 years to build, 2 weeks to collapse.’ This was interpreted as a sarcastic remark about the ‘Joo Ho-young emergency committee’ system, indirectly indicating that he does not intend to meet with Chairman Joo. Chairman Joo also said that day, "I have expressed several times, both directly and indirectly, that I hope to meet (with former leader Lee), but contact has not been made."