Seoeun-suk, Democratic Party Supreme Council Member, CBS Radio Interview
"Not an Atmosphere for Byeong-gye to Run"
Woo Won-sik, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, is running for re-election as the floor leader for the first time in history, while Seo Eun-sook, a Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party, stated, "There seemed to be some requests from within the lawmakers." Woo previously served as the Democratic Party floor leader for one year starting in May 2017 during the Moon Jae-in administration.
On the 25th, Seo appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and said, "Recently, Woo Won-sik has been very active in responding to issues such as Fukushima and the relocation of General Hong Beom-do's bust. Seeing the current various situations within the party, it seems he has decided to run with some determination."
However, Seo added, "He registered just before 6 p.m. yesterday evening, so we need to observe various situations today," suggesting that there might be candidates who drop out of the race.
Regarding criticism that the floor leader candidates are all 'pro-Moon Jae-in,' she said, "If we look at the distribution of lawmakers, it's 136 to 30, whether the passing votes are 29 or 39," adding, "Isn't it natural that more people from the group of 136 would run than from the group of 30? That's what I think."
She continued, "Honestly, in the current atmosphere, those who are considered 'anti-Moon' or who cast passing votes are probably not in a position to become floor leaders," she said.
Seo also stated that appropriate measures will be taken against lawmakers who publicly voted in favor of the arrest motion for Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party leader, calling it a clear violation. She said, "It was not a free vote," and added, "Although it was not decided strictly as a party stance, there were discussions and resolutions almost equivalent to a party stance."
She went on, "Through the lawmakers' meeting and the central lawmakers' condemnation rally, it has already been declared that the prosecution's request for an arrest warrant this time is an unjust political suppression," and said, "The floor leader even made a special request at the lawmakers' meeting for members to express their opinion by rejecting this unjust political suppression."
Regarding claims that the Democratic Party is in turmoil due to Lee's judicial risks, she said, "I see it not as judicial risk but as judicial stalking," pointing out, "Investigations have been ongoing for two years, with nearly 376, almost 400, searches including the central party office and surrounding individuals. There have been six summonses alone."
She added, "Is this something that can happen in an advanced democratic country?" and criticized, "Despite the possibility of non-custodial investigation, insisting on custodial investigation, especially targeting the opposition party leader, is an extremely excessive investigation."
Regarding the possibility of Lee directing candidate nominations from prison, she said, "There is the process of detention review and various legal procedures that can be pursued," adding, "Because of these, we will consider and proceed according to the results."
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