Inyohan Meets Yoo Seung-min for 2-Hour Talk
Emphasizes Grand Unity Including Lee Jun-seok and Hong Joon-pyo's Disciplinary Pardons
"Criticizes President for Only Warning Without Taking Action"
The People Power Party's Innovation Committee attempted to embrace the so-called 'non-Yoon faction (non-Yoon Seok-yeol faction).' The intention is to create a 'one team' atmosphere before the general election through party unity. However, some argue that improving the vertical relationship with the presidential office, which has been continuously raised, should precede integration.
According to political circles on the 1st, Innovation Committee Chairman In Yo-han recently met with former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min and had a conversation lasting nearly two hours. Former lawmaker Yoo is an out-of-office figure who has been a prominent critic of President Yoon Seok-yeol and his government. In the same day’s CBS radio interview, Chairman In praised him, saying, "Representative Yoo is truly a gentleman," and "After meeting him personally, I felt respect. In short, his attitude of worrying about the party and the country was admirable."
Since its official launch, the Innovation Committee has consistently emphasized party unity as a priority. Earlier, Chairman In announced as Innovation Proposal No. 1 a plan to pardon the suspension of party membership rights of former leader Lee Jun-seok and Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo, both from the non-Yoon faction, as part of integration efforts. Former leader Lee received an additional one-year suspension of party membership rights last October for using terms like 'sheep in wolf's clothing' and 'new military regime,' which prevented him from returning to the party leadership and from participating in the party convention held last March. Mayor Hong received a 10-month suspension of party membership rights due to a golf controversy during last year’s flood disaster.
Innovation Committee member Oh Shin-hwan explained on KBS radio that day, "We did not demand a pardon for any specific individual, but rather, in order for the party to move toward grand unity, just as the president’s pardoning principle includes national unity as a major premise, we borrowed that internal meaning," adding, "According to Article 30 of the party’s ethics committee regulations, the party leader can cancel or suspend disciplinary actions through a resolution of the Supreme Council." The pardon proposal will be finalized after approval by the Supreme Council on the 2nd.
Professor In Yohan of Yonsei University College of Medicine is giving a lecture at the People Power Party study group event 'National Sympathy' held at the National Assembly on August 23. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@
However, voices inside and outside the party say that if the Innovation Committee fails to present a plan to improve relations between the party and the presidential office, its efforts will inevitably be in vain. There remains significant concern within the party that the presidential office will intervene in candidate nominations. After Chairman In’s interview was made public, in which he said, "I hope star lawmakers from Daegu-Gyeongbuk (TK) and Busan-Gyeongnam (PK) come up to Seoul during the general election," speculation arose that this statement was made with tacit understanding from the presidential office. This was interpreted as meaning that senior lawmakers from their strongholds would be weeded out to make way for presidential office personnel’s nominations.
Former People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok said in a radio interview that day, "Why didn’t they speak out to the president for ten days and only now make a pre-announcement?" and added, "They should have started with that. If they had, others would say, ‘At least that person has courage.’" A ruling party lawmaker with a constituency in the metropolitan area also criticized, saying, "What kind of Innovation Committee is this?" and "It’s closer to what a unity committee would do."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
