Jowonjin: "Hwangbo Seunghee Should Resign as Lawmaker... We Need to Look Into Who Nominated Her"

"Former Lawmaker Kim Hyun-ah Must Leave Party"
"Woo Byung-woo Will Run as Independent"

Jo Won-jin, leader of the Our Republican Party, raised his voice regarding Hwang Bo-seung-hee, a member of the People Power Party who is embroiled in controversy over allegations of illegal political fund acceptance and an affair, with rumors of her "leaving the party" emerging, saying, "Not only leaving the party, but it is right to immediately resign from the National Assembly."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 19th, Jo said on YTN's "News King Park Ji-hoon" program, "The longer this drags on, the more confusion Busan Jeonggwan falls into, and what is regrettable is that female youth politics is a key issue in our politics, and it is right to move in that direction, but because of some misguided politicians, the path for young female politicians is being blocked, which I find regrettable."

When asked by the host whether this controversy would affect the general election in the Busan area, he said, "It does have an impact," adding, "Hwang Bo-seung-hee may have a lot to say about her private life, but I think we need to look into who exactly nominated and recommended Hwang Bo-seung-hee."

He implied there were problems in the nomination process during the last general election. He said, "Even if someone is nominated, whether that person becomes corrupt or has issues in their private life or moral problems, it all comes down to that one member. At that time, Busan had very fierce competition," adding, "If there were various controversies, we need to see who pushed for Hwang Bo-seung-hee and what happened in Busan during that process. We need to watch that issue more closely."

Jo also mentioned that former lawmaker Lee Eon-ju was excluded from the nomination process. On the 17th, Lee criticized Hwang Bo-seung-hee on her social media, saying, "Two elders (former lawmakers Kim Hyung-o and Kim Moo-sung) each put forward their secretaries to hold a primary in Yeongdo. So the one who won is the current lawmaker causing recent controversies."

Regarding former lawmaker Kim Hyun-ah, who is under investigation for violating the Political Funds Act, Jo said, "Kim was the most righteous, cleanest, and most pretentious lawmaker. I was part of the Saenuri Party leadership, so I know the details very well. Listening to various recorded files, I realized how deep the duplicity can be," adding, "For Kim and others, declaring not to run in the election, and for Hwang Bo-seung-hee to resign and leave the party as soon as possible, would lighten the burden on the People Power Party."

Regarding former Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs Woo Byung-woo, who is rumored to be running, Jo said, "It is true that Woo has not yet made a final decision," adding, "The relationship between President Yoon Seok-youl and Woo is very good. In the final stage, Woo might run under the People Power Party, but if that does not happen, he is highly likely to run as an independent in his hometown area of Yeongju, Yeongyang, Bonghwa, and Uljin."