'5inhoe' Kim Ki-hyun "Not Worth Considering"... Concerns Over 'Yunhaekgwan' Frame Within the Party

Lee Yong-ho "5-inhoe Decided" Remark Controversy
There Was Actually a Previous Supreme Council Meeting, but Misunderstanding
Concerns Over Being Framed as 'Yunhaekgwan'

The leadership of the People Power Party has actively clarified that the so-called '5-person group' mentioned by Representative Lee Yong-ho within the party is not true.

Kim Ki-hyun, the leader of the People Power Party, dismissed the mention of the 5-person group as "not worth considering" during a meeting with reporters on the 1st in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, after attending the Supreme Council meeting and visiting the Veterans Rehabilitation Sports site. He said, "It is natural for the party leader, secretary-general, policy committee chairman, deputy head of strategic planning, and chief spokesperson to gather and discuss," and questioned, "Is it natural not to consult?"

Kim Ki-hyun, leader of the People Power Party, is greeting attendees at the People's Sympathy event, a party study meeting held at the National Assembly Members' Office Building on the 31st. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Secretary-General Lee Cheol-gyu also added on the same day when asked about the 5-person group, "(Representative Lee Yong-ho) himself said it was a slip of the tongue." In a phone call, Secretary-General Lee said, "He said that he spoke that way while raising a rebuttal," and added, "Apart from official decision-making bodies within the party, there is absolutely no private interference or involvement." He emphasized, "If such things existed, they would not be tolerated."

A lawmaker belonging to the leadership also said in a phone call, "If the Supreme Council is like a board of directors, there is an operational meeting that decides practical matters beforehand," and added, "We regularly have breakfast together at 8 a.m. every morning." However, he added, "There is a need to distinguish so that the press does not misunderstand it as a politically or governmentally convened meeting."

Earlier, Representative Lee Yong-ho appeared on CBS Radio on the 30th of last month and claimed, "There is a 5-person group within the party." He said, "The Kim Ki-hyun leadership system has become somewhat strange," and questioned, "The Supreme Council is the highest decision-making body, but is it just a figurehead? Are the actual important core agenda decisions made elsewhere?" He responded this way when asked why he did not run in the by-election for the Supreme Council following Representative Tae Young-ho’s resignation, despite being mentioned as a potential candidate.

In response, some within the party have expressed concern about falling into the 'Yoon core group' frame. A first-term lawmaker said in a phone call regarding the mention of the 5-person group, "Former leader Lee Jun-seok once confined our party’s scope of activity with the 'Yoon core group' frame," and added, "It is true that there is concern that this remark might be interpreted in that way." In fact, the People Power Party leadership includes many pro-Yoon faction lawmakers. Park Dae-chul, the policy committee chairman, Lee Cheol-gyu, the secretary-general, and Park Soo-young, the head of the Yeouido Research Institute, are all classified as core members of the pro-Yoon faction.