Cho Eung-cheon, a non-mainstream member of the Democratic Party of Korea, criticized the significant party position reshuffle that took place the day before, saying, "All appointed and nominated officials who contributed to solidifying the 'bulletproof' image must step down." He also pointed out that Secretary-General Cho Jeong-sik, who led the 'bulletproof' effort, was retained.
On the 28th, Cho said on YTN's 'News King Park Ji-hoon' program, "It seems like this party position reshuffle was meant to quell the anxieties and dissatisfaction of the non-mainstream faction, but the biggest problem in our party right now is the party leader's judicial risk and the bulletproof frame."
He explained, "The fundamental solution is for the leader to step down voluntarily, but since the leader was elected with overwhelming support and does not step down, it is impossible to force him out. So the alternative proposed is for all appointed and nominated officials to resign."
This party position reshuffle has been praised for pursuing balance rather than factional colors, but criticism has arisen because Secretary-General Cho, who has a significant influence on candidate nominations, remained in his position. However, Cho emphasized that the issue with Secretary-General Cho is not about candidate nominations but about the bulletproof frame. He said, "Who is in charge of candidate nominations, whether that person stays or leaves, is not the key at all." He added, "The Secretary-General held a press briefing on Sunday, criticizing the prosecution's investigation and defending the party leader multiple times. He took the lead in the bulletproof effort."
He continued, "No matter how much I think about it, I have never seen a Secretary-General take such a leading role in protecting the party leader personally," and questioned, "I point this out because Secretary-General Cho has contributed to solidifying the bulletproof frame, so I say he should be replaced. What does candidate nomination have to do with this?"
He also criticized the decision not to replace Seo Eun-sook, a nominated Supreme Council member who led the bulletproof effort. Cho said, "At the first rally on February 4th at Namdaemun, (Seo) gave a speech saying, 'How happy do you think the Yoon Seok-yeol administration and the People Power Party must be to see Democratic Party members who did not come out to this rally because they were worried about a backlash?'" He added, "Then, as the chairperson of the Busan City Party, she sent official letters to each party district in Busan, demanding that elected officials who did not attend submit reasons for their absence and warning that they could be disciplined if they failed to do so."
Regarding Democratic Party member Kim Nam-guk's claim that the party's hardcore supporters known as 'Gaeddal' are a "frame created by the People Power Party," Cho said, "To my recollection, 'Gaeddal' was not created by the People Power Party. Toward the end of the presidential election, when misogynistic remarks were made in the National Assembly, a strong female support base emerged spontaneously on female-majority sites as a reaction, supporting then-candidate Lee Jae-myung, and they called themselves 'Gaeddal.' I remember it that way." He criticized, "Kim often brings up frames like this."
He also pointed out that Kim made similar framing claims during the era of President Moon Jae-in's hardcore fandom, known as 'Moonppa,' who sent text message bomb threats. Cho said, "When five first-term lawmakers said they needed to cross Cho Kuk's river, 'Moonppa' sent massive text bomb threats. So I appealed on social media, asking why the leadership just let the first-term lawmakers say they wanted to cross Cho Kuk's river while the text bomb threats continued." He added, "Then Kim told me in the lawmakers' group chat, 'Please stop talking about the text bomb threats, Cho. This is a frame the conservatives want. It could be sent by conservatives.' Even then, he used the frame argument," criticizing him.
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