Halt from Committee Recommendation Stage
Factional Conflicts Over 'Full Authority Delegation'
Can It Launch Within This Month?
The Democratic Party of Korea has yet to launch the party innovation body it promised to establish to manage the fallout from lawmaker Kim Nam-guk's departure amid allegations of virtual asset speculation, even more than two weeks after the leadership's commitment. Internal factional conflicts within the party have caused difficulties in selecting innovation committee members and defining their authority.
On the 1st, a Democratic Party leadership official told this outlet in a phone interview, "We are receiving recommendations for committee members," adding, "No concrete decisions have been made yet regarding the operation method of the innovation body." The official continued, "The Democratic Party has formed emergency committees and innovation committees several times before, but the results were unsatisfactory," and "Because of this, everyone is cautious about recommending candidates."
Earlier, Floor Leader Park Kwang-on held a reform general meeting on the 14th of last month, promising the establishment of an innovation body by stating, "We pledge to undertake fundamental reflection and full-scale reform with the determination of re-founding the party." However, more than two weeks later, no progress has been made as no one has been selected to lead the innovation body. Party leader Lee Jae-myung also said during a YouTube live broadcast on the 24th of last month, "We will carefully gather many opinions on whether it is appropriate to have only outsiders or who among insiders would take the role, and consider the format."
Regarding this, Chief Spokesperson Kwon Chil-seung told reporters after a high-level strategic meeting on the 30th of last month, "We are looking for suitable candidates both inside and outside the party, and will launch the body once confirmed," adding, "The launch date has not been set."
As the formation of the innovation body drags on, pressure within the party is mounting. At the party's parliamentary meeting held on the 25th of last month, it was reported that opinions were expressed such as "Since weeks have passed since the reform general meeting, we hope a blueprint will be presented soon."
The biggest issue is the selection of members and the authority of the innovation body. Even within the leadership, opinions differ on the appointment of the committee chair, and no consensus has been reached. Regarding authority, the non-Lee faction (anti-Lee Jae-myung faction) demands "full delegation of authority," while the pro-Lee faction insists on authority at the level of the existing innovation committee.
Non-Lee faction lawmaker Cho Eung-cheon emphasized full delegation of authority on KBS Radio's "Choi Kyung-young's Strong Current Affairs" on the same day, stating, "I believe the most urgent task is to present the Democratic Party's new line and agenda," adding, "If full authority is not guaranteed, it will be just for show and a half-hearted effort." Lawmaker Yoon Gun-young emphasized on Facebook on the 23rd of last month, "If it is just to create a facade and pretend, there is no reason to form it in the first place. The most important thing is the authority of the innovation committee," and stressed, "It must have full authority. The party leadership's authority must be boldly delegated." He also argued that an outsider should be appointed, saying, "We need someone who can decisively break away from paternalism."
On the other hand, pro-Lee faction lawmaker Yang Yi-won-young countered on the 24th of last month on CBS Radio's "Kim Hyun-jung's News Show," saying, "I believe the innovation committee's role is necessary, but the party leadership has its role, and the innovation committee has its role," adding, "The innovation committee should focus solely on party innovation and reform."
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