Cho Kuk: "Yoon Does Not Realize He Is the Root of the Problem... Han Dong-hoon Should Be Investigated"

"President Yoon is the Root of the Problem" Criticism of Statement
Claim That Aides Leaked About Private Apology

Jo Guk, leader of the Jo Guk Innovation Party, criticized President Yoon Seok-yeol's first statement after the general election on the 17th, saying, "It seems he does not realize that the root of all problems is the president himself." Regarding the Jo Guk Innovation Party ranking first in the proportional representation vote in Sejong City, Jo said, "The first phase of lame duck is the defection of public officials, and that defection has begun."

On the same day, Jo appeared on the YouTube broadcast 'Kim Eo-jun's Humility is Difficult News Factory' and said, "It's really absurd. I was a presidential aide. The president's statement should have started and ended with 'I apologize to the people.'" He added, "The aides did not tell him. They got fired for saying, 'You are the problem.'"

Cho Kuk, leader of the Cho Kuk Innovation Party, visited the Itaewon disaster victims' memorial altar at Seoul Plaza on the afternoon of the 16th to pay tribute to the victims and then made a statement.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Jo also called the presidential office's additional notice that "President Yoon apologized to the people in a private meeting" a "lie." He argued, "Since he did not apologize at an official event, it is highly likely that an aide suggested, 'I'll just let it slip.'" He emphasized, "Such a sloppy apology, an apology to aides, is not an apology."

Regarding the Jo Guk Innovation Party's first-place vote share in the proportional representation party vote in Sejong City in the general election, Jo said, "Isn't Sejong a gathering place for public officials? They made us number one there. The first phase of lame duck is the defection of public officials, and I believe that defection has begun." He added, "I think two or three decisive incidents will occur. When that happens, a day will come when (President Yoon) apologizes in a very miserable way."

About former People Power Party emergency committee chairman Han Dong-hoon, Jo said, "I really don't know why he wants to go into politics," adding, "He seems to have no thought about the people's suffering and hardships." When the host said, "(Former Chairman Han) seems to be going to a lower place now," Jo responded, "He should be investigated. If the Han Dong-hoon special prosecutor law passes, some in the People Power Party might join, and President Yoon might even secretly order them to agree out of annoyance."

Regarding the formation of a parliamentary negotiation group, Jo said, "The will to form a negotiation group is firm, but it is not easy," adding, "The best is to do it before the opening of the 22nd National Assembly, but I think it can be done after the opening or by the end of the year." He said, "If we focus solely on increasing numbers, the party's identity can become blurred, and if we bring in people from other parties, we will be criticized. I think it is better to form a parliamentary negotiation group in a way that those who supported the Jo Guk Innovation Party and pro-democracy voters can understand, and within that timeframe."

The Jo Guk Innovation Party currently holds a total of 12 seats. To meet the 20-seat requirement for a negotiation group, 8 more seats are needed. Scenarios are emerging where small parties with similar lines and ideologies form alliances centered on the Jo Guk Innovation Party or even amend the National Assembly Act.