조국 Visits Gwangju: "We Will Not Form a Negotiation Group Even If We Have to Take People Away"

"Even Without Being a Negotiation Group, We Can Still Do Our Work"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Jo Guk, leader of the Jo Guk Innovation Party, visited Gwangju on the 23rd and stated, "We will not rush to form a parliamentary negotiation group or try to poach members."

During his first visit to Gwangju and Jeonnam since the general election, Jo held a press conference at the Gwangju Metropolitan Council with elected members of the Jo Guk Innovation Party, saying, "I do not think that we cannot accomplish our tasks even if we are not a negotiation group."

He continued, "We form a parliamentary negotiation group because it is better to realize the goals and values we have set, not to fill the numbers just to receive money," emphasizing this point.

He also said, "There may be parties that earned a lot of money through mergers and splits, but those parties did not gain much support," adding, "The meaning of the April general election is to clearly judge and warn the Yoon Seok-yeol administration and to ask them to take the lead on livelihood, economy, and welfare issues."

Jo stated, "Now, we should focus on the public sentiment revealed in the last general election, where in Honam, the Jo Guk Innovation Party was made the number one proportional representation party. We need to understand why the votes were concentrated and what policies and laws should be enacted based on that sentiment," and added, "We will focus on that, achieve results in the parliament, and base the next decisions on those results for the local elections."

He also mentioned whether the party will field candidates in the local elections two years from now.

He said, "Given the expected political schedule, we will naturally participate, but we are not currently preparing for the local elections," and added, "We will focus on policies and bills that reflect public sentiment and make the next decisions based on those results."

Meanwhile, before the press conference, Jo paid respects at the Gwangju National 5·18 Democratic Cemetery and emphasized, "Some factions within the conservative political camp, including the People Power Party, continuously disparage the May 18th Movement," adding, "The fundamental solution is to enshrine the spirit of May 18th in the constitution, and it should be included in the preamble of the constitution through constitutional amendment."