Shinpyung: "Secret Yongsu Meeting Controversy? Yoon is Being Disrespected"

"President Yoon, Begging for Talks? An Uncomfortable Expression"

Amid ongoing controversy over alleged secret dealings surrounding the summit meeting between President Yoon Suk-yeol and Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, Shin Pyeong, a lawyer known as President Yoon's mentor, recently claimed that most of the statements made by Professor Ham Seong-duk of Kyonggi University and Professor Emeritus Im Hyuk-baek of Korea University, as reported by some media outlets, are not true.

President Yoon Suk-yeol (right in the photo) is speaking after listening to the message delivered by Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, during a summit meeting held on the 29th of last month at the presidential office in Yongsan, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Shin Pyeong, known as President Yoon's mentor, appeared on SBS's "Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show" on the 9th and emphasized, "A close aide of Lee's close aides called me yesterday and firmly said, 'Nothing like this happened; there was no behind-the-scenes manipulation or coordination through secret channels.'"

He said, "Our constitution incorporates a significant degree of cabinet responsibility," adding, "According to the constitution, the political status of the Prime Minister is quite significant, so for the President not to nominate the Prime Minister but to receive recommendations from others such as Lee Jae-myung, the party leader, would be a constitutional violation," and drew a clear line by stating, "Considering President Yoon's knowledge and insight as I know it, such a thing could not happen."

He continued, "In the problematic article, it was written that when President Yoon said, 'Let's meet with our spouses,' Lee responded, 'We shouldn't do this just to avert a crisis,' which made it seem as if President Yoon was begging for the meeting, but this is not true," showing signs of discomfort. Regarding the critical expressions such as 'Trojan horse' and 'resignation demand' directed at President Yoon on the People Power Party's member bulletin board, Lawyer Shin responded, "I understand the feelings of the party members, but clearly, those are false."

Meanwhile, on the previous day, Lawyer Shin wrote on his Facebook that in response to some media reports claiming that Professor Ham and Professor Emeritus Im acted as 'secret envoys' coordinating the summit meeting between President Yoon and Lee, "The world is so chaotic these days that people see all sorts of things."