[Full Text] Park Chan-dae "Let's Create an Emergency Consultative Body Among Ruling and Opposition Parties, Medical Professionals, and Government to Resolve Medical Crisis"

Park Chan-dae, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, emphasized on the 4th that to resolve the medical crisis, "the ruling and opposition parties must put their heads together and, along with the medical community and the government, reach a social grand compromise."

In his speech representing the negotiating groups at the National Assembly that day, Park said, "It is not the time to stubbornly hold hostage the lives of the people. I urge the President and the government to also participate in protecting the lives and safety of the people."

He pointed out, "The President continues to irresponsibly insist that there is no problem," and "He seems not even to consider the public's fear that a medical crisis might occur ahead of the Chuseok holiday."

He added, "Even at this moment, patients are going around in circles looking for emergency rooms. The emergency medical system is in a critical situation, practically collapsing," and stressed, "Measures must be promptly prepared to protect the lives of the people and prevent the collapse of the medical system."

Park Chan-dae, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is delivering a negotiation group representative speech at the plenary session held at the National Assembly on the 4th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

The following is the full text of Floor Leader Park's speech representing the negotiating groups.

In times of crisis, we must return to the Constitution.

Respected citizens, overseas Koreans!

Speaker Woo Won-sik, senior and fellow lawmakers!

I am Park Chan-dae, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea.

I was an ordinary citizen dreaming of small happiness while working as an accountant.

Following the words of the late President Roh Moo-hyun that "the last bastion of democracy is the organized power of awakened citizens,"

I entered politics and have taken on the heavy responsibility of being a three-term lawmaker and floor leader.

Because I am an ordinary citizen myself,

I have always tried to do politics from the perspective and level of the citizens.

I want to say that today's speech was also prepared from the viewpoint of an ordinary citizen.

◆ A President without the will to uphold the Constitution

Our Constitution defines the legitimacy and identity of the Republic of Korea.

Chapters 1, Articles 1 to 3, regulate sovereignty, the people, and territory.

Article 1: The Republic of Korea is a democratic republic.

Sovereignty resides in the people, and all state power emanates from the people.

Article 2: The requirements for being a citizen of the Republic of Korea shall be determined by law.

The state shall protect overseas nationals as prescribed by law.

Article 3: The territory of the Republic of Korea shall consist of the Korean Peninsula and its adjacent islands.

According to Article 66 of the Constitution, the President has the duty to uphold

the nation's independence, territorial integrity, and continuity,

and to protect the Constitution.

According to Article 69, the President takes the following oath at the inauguration:

"I solemnly swear before the people that I will uphold the Constitution, defend the country,

strive for the peaceful reunification of the fatherland, promote the freedom and welfare of the people,

and advance the national culture, faithfully performing the duties of the President."

President Yoon Seok-youl also took this oath.

But what is the reality now?

Is President Yoon upholding the Constitution?

Is he protecting the nation's independence, territorial integrity, and continuity?

As an ordinary citizen and a politician, I cannot help but ask.

The Constitution is being trampled upon.

Those who deny the preamble of the Constitution, which begins with

"Our Korean people, shining with a long history and tradition, inherit the legal legitimacy of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea established through the March 1st Movement and the democratic ideals of the April 19 Revolution resisting injustice,"

are taking over public office.

The President, who has the duty to uphold the Constitution,

is appointing those who deny the Constitution to public office,

creating an anti-constitutional situation.

He appointed a person advocating the rehabilitation of pro-Japanese collaborators as the head of the Independence Hall,

and appointed a person claiming that Koreans were Japanese nationals during the Japanese colonial period as Minister of Employment and Labor.

Instead of protesting Japan's territorial ambitions,

he appointed the Minister of National Defense, who officially recognized the use of the Rising Sun Flag, a symbol of Japanese imperialism, as the National Security Office chief.

Yet the President denies knowing anything.

Is this normal?

What about erasing Dokdo, our territory?

The military training materials described Dokdo as a disputed territory.

Dokdo defense drills were made private,

and the East Sea is labeled as the Sea of Japan without intervention.

Dokdo sculptures disappeared quietly from subway stations and the War Memorial.

In this situation, what is the President, who must uphold the Constitution of the Republic of Korea, doing?

If the President is not denying the Constitution, he must take responsibility.

I urge him to show his will to fulfill his duty to uphold the Constitution by immediately dismissing Kim Hyung-seok, head of the Independence Hall, and Kim Moon-soo, Minister of Labor, both of whom deny the legitimacy and identity of the Republic of Korea and hold anti-national views.

◆ The crisis facing the Republic of Korea

It has been two years and four months since the Yoon Seok-youl administration began.

During this time, the Republic of Korea has faced a comprehensive crisis.

Public safety, the livelihood economy, democracy, and peace on the Korean Peninsula are in jeopardy,

and even the constitutional order is at risk.

First, public safety has been abandoned.

On August 8, 2022,

a tragedy occurred where three mothers living in a semi-basement in Sillim-dong, Seoul, drowned in their flooded home during heavy rain.

Two months later, on October 29,

159 people lost their lives in a disaster in Itaewon, Yongsan-gu, Seoul.

On July 15, 2023,

14 people died trapped in the flooded tunnel section of the Gungpyeong 2 underpass in Osong-eup, Cheongju, Chungbuk.

What connects all these tragedies is

lack of preparation, incompetence, and irresponsibility.

Preventive measures were inadequate or nonexistent,

post-disaster responses were the height of incompetence,

and no one took responsibility.

The attitude of the President and government toward these tragedies

shattered trust in the state and government,

forcing citizens to fend for themselves.

The tragedies are ongoing.

As of September 2024, a serious medical crisis is becoming a reality.

Patients are dying while going around in circles unable to find emergency rooms,

and the frequency is increasing.

Already insufficient emergency room staff are decreasing further,

and more hospitals are closing emergency rooms, yet

the President continues to irresponsibly insist there is no problem.

He seems not to even consider the public's fear that a medical crisis might occur ahead of the Chuseok holiday.

The government, which should protect citizens from crime, is nowhere to be seen.

Despite increasing damage and anxiety from deepfake crimes,

the head of the government department responsible for preventing digital sex crimes and protecting victims has been vacant for six months,

and the related budget was drastically cut this year.

Second, the livelihood economy is in ruins.

The total of national debt and household debt in our country

has exceeded the record high of 3,000 trillion won.

The average total debt service ratio (DSR) of multiple debtors who have loans from three or more financial institutions

rose from 58.2% in Q4 last year to 58.8% in Q1 this year,

and their average loan amount reached 124.01 million won.

Last year's wage arrears amounted to 1.7846 trillion won, a record high,

and just in the first half of this year, arrears have already exceeded 1 trillion won.

The corporate situation is also very serious.

At the end of the first half of this year, the outstanding corporate loans of the four major domestic banks

totaled 884.9771 trillion won, a 7.8% increase from the end of last year.

Among these, the amount overdue for more than three months

reached 2.8075 trillion won, a 16.2% surge from the end of last year.

41% of all listed companies

were so struggling last year that their operating profits could not even cover interest expenses.

Small business owners and self-employed people are also pushed to the limit.

Nearly one million businesses filed for closure last year.

Among the reasons for closure, 'business downturn' accounted for 48.9%,

the second highest since the 2007 financial crisis.

Due to prolonged high inflation and high interest rates, real household income is decreasing,

and the domestic economy is sinking into a severe recession.

Nevertheless, citizens, small business owners, and the self-employed sigh at the President's remarks that the economy is improving.

The national finances are in shambles.

Last year, there was a tax revenue shortfall of 56 trillion won.

This year, a shortfall of around 30 trillion won is predicted.

While opposing support for ordinary people in the name of fiscal soundness,

the government has boasted about tax cuts for the ultra-rich,

ultimately causing a serious fiscal crisis.

Yet the government only calls for tax cuts for the ultra-rich without any measures to increase tax revenue.

Third, democracy is in crisis.

The Yoon Seok-youl government is destroying the democracy that our people achieved through blood and sweat

through prosecutorial dictatorship, ignoring the National Assembly, administrative despotism, and media suppression.

The opposition party is not a partner in state affairs but considered an enemy to be destroyed.

The prosecution has become the Red Guards protecting power and leads the oppression of the opposition.

Hundreds of searches were conducted against the leader of the main opposition party,

and they were prosecuted on various charges, but

pardons were frequently given to those in power.

Political retaliation against former presidents is now being carried out.

Rule by presidential decree that nullifies laws has become routine,

and the President frequently uses veto power.

Despite opposition from the government organization law, the decree was amended

to forcibly establish a personnel information management unit in the Ministry of Justice.

This resulted in incompetent personnel screening and personnel disasters.

The decree greatly expanded the prosecution's investigative authority, nullifying the Prosecutors' Office Act,

and the establishment of the Police Bureau was also pushed through by decree.

Unprecedentedly meticulous and petty media suppression and broadcasting control are ongoing.

From the nationwide listening test of 'Biden-Nalimen' to refusal to board the presidential plane,

even 'machete terror threats' were made.

Public broadcaster KBS was ruined by separate collection of license fees, and EBS was shaken,

YTN was forcibly privatized,

and TBS's existence is threatened by budget cuts.

Penalties and legal sanctions are frequently imposed on government-critical reports,

and a coup to replace the board of directors of MBC's Foundation for Broadcast Culture was carried out.

The Broadcasting and Communications Commission chairman resigned in a 'trick' to avoid impeachment,

pursuing broadcasting control, revealing the true face of the Yoon Seok-youl government.

The court has blocked the illegal replacement of the Foundation for Broadcast Culture's directors by the Broadcasting and Communications Commission,

but the government has not given up on broadcasting control.

The freedom democracy index, which was 17th just before the Yoon government took office,

plummeted 30 places in two years,

and South Korea is now evaluated as a country "transitioning from democratization to dictatorship."

Fourth, peace on the Korean Peninsula is in crisis.

Ignoring advice from the opposition and experts to pursue pragmatic diplomacy centered on national interests,

the Yoon government's diplomacy and security policies

have damaged national interests and put the people at risk.

Obsessed with old ideologies and unable to read the major changes in international relations,

they are turning the Korean Peninsula into the frontline of the Cold War again.

Ideological and extreme factional diplomacy has further divided the South and North,

and efforts for peace on the Korean Peninsula have quickly evaporated.

The spirit of the July 4 South-North Joint Statement, the South-North Basic Agreement, and the June 15 Joint Declaration

has become a scrap of paper,

and the September 19 South-North Military Agreement is in a state of complete suspension.

The airspace over the Korean Peninsula has become a battleground where anti-North leaflets and trash balloons fly,

and North Korea and Russia have signed a treaty effectively stipulating automatic military intervention.

What was the result of the government's submissive diplomacy toward Japan?

Empowered by the government's unilateral pro-Japanese policy, Japan is more openly asserting territorial claims over Dokdo and distorting history.

It was even revealed that Japanese defense authorities recently urged the Ministry of National Defense not to conduct any Dokdo defense drills.

Yet the government is steadily advancing the alliance with Japan.

There is growing concern that Dokdo might be handed over to Japan,

and that the Japan Self-Defense Forces might be stationed on the Korean Peninsula.

Fifth, the constitutional order is in crisis.

No one would believe that appointing a thief as police chief means there is no problem with public safety.

Appointing officials who openly deny the Constitution

is itself an act denying the nation's legitimacy and identity.

If there is a so-called anti-national force the President refers to,

it would be those who glorify pro-Japanese collaborators, justify colonial rule, and deny the Constitution.

Yet the President, who has the duty to uphold the Constitution,

does not even recognize the seriousness of the problem.

On one hand, he encourages fighting the opposition,

while on the other, he talks about dialogue and compromise?a divisive mindset,

hypocrisy with words and actions that do not match,

irresponsibility that only knows how to rage but not take responsibility,

and autocratic, uncommunicative leadership that never listens to others

are the fundamental causes of the crisis facing South Korea and its people.

The disappearance of politics and the vicious cycle of extreme confrontation

have the same cause.

The ruling party claims the opposition is practicing parliamentary dictatorship,

but the real dictatorship is the President.

Less than halfway through his term, the President has already exercised veto power 21 times,

the most in history except for Syngman Rhee.

Even bills overwhelmingly approved by seven of the eight parliamentary parties

are unilaterally vetoed by the President.

Only passing bills that suit the President's taste

is not democracy.

The reality where the President's veto is the 'constant' is abnormal in every way.

The President even skipped the National Assembly opening ceremony,

the first time since democratization.

The President, who should respect the legislature and treat the opposition as a partner in state affairs,

ignores the National Assembly, antagonizes the opposition,

divides the people, stirs up conflict, and fractures public opinion.

As the President represents all the people,

he has the duty to strive for national unity.

He must listen not only to the 30% who support him

but also to the 70% who criticize him.

In April, our people decisively judged the Yoon Seok-youl government, specifically President Yoon.

The opposition's 192 seats, the first-ever opposition majority in history,

was a stern command to completely change the state policy,

and a warning to the President who ignores public opinion and intimidates the people.

However, the President has not changed at all.

On the contrary, he is blatantly defying public opinion and backtracking.

Immediately after the general election, he exercised veto power and urged ruling party lawmakers to unite and fight the opposition.

The President vetoed public opinion,

and the people are the target he is told to fight.

It is said, "Those who follow heaven prosper; those who go against heaven perish."

Public opinion can launch the ship of power, but when angered, it overturns the ship.

Our people have not stood by unjust power.

If public opinion continues to be defied,

President Yoon will eventually follow an unhappy path.

◆ The role of the National Assembly in overcoming the crisis

Watching the President's recent briefing and press conference,

I thought if the 'Emperor's New Clothes' existed in reality,

this would be exactly what it looks like.

He is not living on the moon, so

I wonder who and what reports he receives to have such a perception so far from the people's level.

Many citizens lament that the current reality is practically a state of anarchy.

Not knowing the crisis is the greatest crisis.

The President has no awareness of the crisis and no will to solve problems.

With the President and government failing to perform their roles,

the people suffer.

The National Assembly must step up and correct state affairs.

If the National Assembly fails to fulfill its role in the face of crisis,

South Korea will inevitably enter an irreparable path.

In an era where democracy is collapsing and daily life is threatened by the President's recklessness,

the National Assembly must be a strong pillar protecting the country and the people's lives.

Its role is to check the government's failures and enable the people to enjoy a better life.

Just recently, a ruling-opposition leaders' meeting was held for the first time in 11 years.

Though somewhat disappointing, I view it positively as a start of efforts by the National Assembly to restore lost politics.

Based on the discussions at the leaders' meeting,

the ruling and opposition parties must continue concrete and practical efforts

to restore livelihoods and overcome the crisis.

That is the duty to the people.

First, to urgently solve livelihood issues, I propose the following.

First, I propose an 'Emergency Consultative Body of the Ruling and Opposition Parties, Medical Community, and Government to Resolve the Medical Crisis.'

Even at this moment, patients are going around in circles looking for emergency rooms.

The emergency medical system is in a critical situation, practically collapsing.

It is not the time to care about pride or party lines.

Measures must be promptly prepared to protect the lives of the people and prevent the collapse of the medical system.

The ruling and opposition parties must put their heads together, with the medical community and government participating,

to reach a social grand compromise.

Everyone will agree that open dialogue from urgent medical crisis solutions to mid- to long-term medical reform plans is the only solution.

It is not the time to stubbornly hold hostage the lives of the people.

I urge the President and government to also participate in protecting the lives and safety of the people.

Second, all-out efforts must be made to stimulate the domestic economy.

Contrary to the President's confidence, our economy

has not escaped the quagmire of low growth.

As everyone knows, the most significant cause is the serious domestic demand slump.

To draw water, you must first pour a bucket of priming water.

Livelihood recovery support funds and expanded issuance of local gift certificates

are the priming water for domestic economic recovery.

If local gift certificates with expiration dates are given to all citizens nationwide,

consumption will occur, sales will increase,

reviving local economies and neighborhood businesses, and helping secure tax revenue.

Expanding the issuance of local gift certificates

is also a policy that can achieve great effects with a small budget.

It is a proven policy welcomed by consumers, self-employed, and small business owners.

It helps stimulate the domestic economy,

so there is no reason to argue about policy copyrights or oppose it.

If you don't like it, the government and ruling party can come up with better measures.

The Democratic Party is always ready to cooperate in restoring the livelihood economy.

We urge the government and ruling party to take a progressive stance.

Third, swift action must be taken to eradicate deepfake crimes and protect victims.

Damage from deepfake crimes using artificial intelligence (AI) technology is severe.

Many victims and citizens are trembling with anxiety.

Swift investigation and strong punishment are important, but

fundamental measures such as crime prevention and victim protection are urgent.

Since the ruling and opposition parties have reached a consensus on institutional improvements,

we will speed up legislation.

The government must also restore the related budget that was cut.

We expect the People Power Party to actively participate in budget restoration and legislation.

Fourth, efforts must be made to restore the lost value of fairness.

There is a saying that poverty can be endured, but unfairness cannot.

According to a research team led by Professor Yoo Myung-soon of Seoul National University Graduate School of Public Health,

nearly half (49.2%) of Korean adults

experience moderate or higher levels of resentment.

Notably, the main cause of resentment is social unfairness.

An unfair society poses a great threat to the mental health of the people.

Therefore, establishing fairness and common sense is directly linked to livelihoods.

Fairness and common sense mean that even those with power must be punished if they do wrong.

The Special Prosecutor Acts for the fallen Marine and for Kim Geon-hee are representative bills to establish fairness and common sense.

The President, who said he opposed special prosecutors because "they committed crimes," refuses special prosecutors,

and the People Power Party, which said "those who oppose special prosecutors are the culprits," also opposes them.

How many citizens can accept this?

It is obviously unfair that the President's spouse receives a 'royal investigation' and is granted immunity without a proper investigation.

There are mountain-like suspicions of crimes such as stock manipulation, luxury bag acceptance, highway privileges, and state affairs manipulation involving the President's spouse,

and normal state administration is impossible if left as is.

Resolving the Marine's grievance and revealing the truth of investigation interference

is not political strife but the realization of justice.

Opposing the Special Prosecutor Act, which the vast majority of the people support, is political strife.

To reveal the truth and establish justice,

the Democratic Party has made a magnanimous decision to accept a third-party recommendation plan.

Now it is time for People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon to keep his promise to the people.

Prosecutorial reform is also essential to uphold the rule of law

and prevent the privatization of power.

The consequences of failing to complete prosecutorial reform in the 21st National Assembly are enormous.

Political prosecutors have taken over the positions once held by political military officers during the military dictatorship,

and are manipulating the country.

The prosecution, which should maintain political neutrality, has become a political power,

creating a world of 'guilty without prosecution, innocent with prosecution.'

Completing prosecutorial reform swiftly is the way for the people and the country.

I take this opportunity to appeal to the People Power Party.

The People Power Party is a member of the legislature before being the ruling party.

The most important thing for lawmakers representing the people is

not the 'heart of Japan' or the 'heart of Yongsan,' but the 'heart of the people.'

In this era of democratic crisis where the legislative power and the constitutional spirit of separation of powers are seriously infringed,

as a member of the legislature,

please step up to check the President and the executive branch's arbitrariness and autocracy.

Criticize the President's frequent use of veto power,

accurately convey public opinion,

and have the courage to correct the wrong state affairs.

Remember that this is the right path for the country and the people,

and the only way to prevent the collapse of conservatism.

◆ The disappearing Republic of Korea

Respected citizens!

Speaker Woo Won-sik, senior and fellow lawmakers!

While the President distorts history, neglects livelihoods, and destroys democracy,

the future of the Republic of Korea is also facing a serious threat.

Climate change, polarization, and low birth rates are giant tsunamis

that are engulfing South Korea.

If drastic measures are not taken now,

warnings say South Korea will soon disappear.

In this era of great transformation, the world is rapidly reorganizing into a new order.

With supply chain restructuring and strengthened nationalism,

industrial and technological competition is extremely fierce.

Major countries are striving not to fall behind in this competition.

They are expanding national research and development (R&D) investment

and working to make the state and companies the main actors in the innovation ecosystem.

But what about us?

We are not leading the times but regressing.

We drastically cut R&D budgets, undermining the future foundation,

then boast about restoring and increasing them to pre-cut levels.

It is like boasting about fixing the barn after all the cows have left.

Polarization is worsening.

Amid the government's backtracking, companies are in crisis,

the middle class is collapsing, and the lives of ordinary people are impoverished.

Yet the President and government are leading tax cuts for the ultra-rich

without any measures to increase tax revenue.

Regardless of national finances and the lives of ordinary people,

they only want to fatten the top 1% ultra-rich.

Corporate and industrial polarization leads to regional and social polarization,

causing a serious low birth rate crisis.

Our country lacks good jobs,

and the rates of tech startups and unicorn growth are very low.

The lack of good jobs leads to unequal opportunities for youth,

and despite high housing prices, education costs, and inflation,

people flock to the metropolitan area,

creating a vicious cycle that causes people to give up marriage and childbirth.

As a result, South Korea faces a population extinction and national extinction crisis,

with a total fertility rate predicted to be in the 0.6 range this year.

Time is running out.

The longer we delay, the greater the national crisis becomes.

We must properly establish strategies and measures for growth and distribution, climate crisis, and low birth rates.

We must actively respond to energy transition

and mobilize all national capabilities to enhance industrial and technological competitiveness.

As agreed by the ruling and opposition leaders,

we must promptly prepare support measures for the semiconductor industry, AI industry, and national power grid expansion.

We must alleviate industrial and corporate polarization, the starting point of polarization,

and promote balanced growth of the industrial ecosystem through strategic industrial clusters tailored to regional characteristics and environments.

The state and companies must work together to ensure industrial growth leads to good jobs.

We must improve the quality of life for ordinary and middle-class people

with warm and detailed customized welfare on top of universal welfare.

The starting point for supporting companies and the industrial ecosystem is talent development.

Through bold innovation of the bureaucratic national R&D system,

researchers' creativity should lead to industrialization and commercialization,

becoming the foundation for technological and industrial development.

We must actively invest in talent development and R&D for this.

We must boldly reduce the world's longest working hours.

As long as long working hours continue, the low birth rate problem cannot be solved.

We should move toward a four-day workweek,

or at least reduce working hours to 36 or 32 hours per week under the five-day workweek,

ensuring evenings with children.

Tax policy reform is also essential.

Instead of endless tax cuts for the ultra-rich,

we must prepare rationally for the future,

strengthen the middle class, and stabilize the lives of ordinary people

through livelihood tax policies.

Though late, we must now mobilize national capabilities to respond.

To this end, I propose establishing special committees on climate and population

to proactively respond to future crises.

Fragmented and sporadic discussions and responses scattered across ministries

cannot respond effectively.

The government, ruling and opposition parties, and experts from all fields

must participate to establish systematic and comprehensive measures covering all sectors,

and lead the transition to turn crisis into opportunity.

I hope the government and ruling party will join this path for the nation's future.

Pension reform must also be concluded.

In the 21st National Assembly, pension reform failed due to opposition from the government and ruling party.

The President's newly proposed pension reform plan

renders previous National Assembly discussions useless and divides the people.

Since the lives of the people's old age and future generations are at stake,

we must strive to create a plan acceptable to all citizens.

Constitutional amendment must also be accelerated.

Discussions to revise the Constitution, stuck in the 1987 system,

have long been made but repeatedly failed due to political differences and politicization.

If it is difficult to change all at once,

let's wisely change what is agreeable sequentially.

Including the spirit of the May 18 Democratic Movement in the preamble, a four-year two-term presidency,

and the introduction of a runoff election system are agreeable items

to be amended first in the 22nd National Assembly.

I hope the amendment can be completed by the local elections in two years.

◆ Politics of 'Hamjeulhamul'

Respected Speaker Woo Won-sik and senior and fellow lawmakers!

On the 13th of last month, a young man in his 20s installing air conditioners in a middle school cafeteria in Jangseong, Jeollanam-do, collapsed and died from heatstroke.

On May 28, a delivery worker who lamented that he was "running like a dog" died.

On June 16, a young worker full of dreams, aged 19, died six months after joining a factory in Jeonju.

On June 24, 23 workers lost their lives in a fire at a primary battery manufacturing plant in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi-do.

Worker deaths at workplaces continue without end.

In just last year, 2,016 workers died at workplaces.

Among them, 61.55% worked at businesses with fewer than 50 employees.

59.19% of fatal accidents subject to disaster investigation occurred at businesses with fewer than 50 employees.

Yet the President says the Serious Accident Punishment Act has too harsh penalties.

The People Power Party proposes to postpone applying the Act to businesses with fewer than 50 employees.

Is cost more important than human life?

Can we leave the reality where workplaces become death scenes while people go there to live as it is?

I urge the President and the People Power Party to withdraw their positions.

Life comes before money.

"Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep."

This is my life creed and the essence of politics, a verse from the Bible.

When power is used for the public good,

politics is a useful tool to change people's lives,

but when power is privatized for personal gain,

politics becomes a weapon threatening people's lives.

Politics for power, not for the people,

and politics that privatize authority must now be purged.

Politicians are agents temporarily entrusted with precious authority by the people.

The authority entrusted by the people must be used only for the people.

The standard is the Constitution.

We must return to the spirit of the Constitution.

Politics representing the sovereign people,

politics for the sovereign people must be done.

Only then will trust in politics sprout,

people's lives improve, and the nation's future brighten.

The Democratic Party will always be by the people's side.

We will rejoice with the people and weep with the people.

On the path to protecting the people's lives,

to restoring broken democracy,

and to opening the future of the Republic of Korea, we will devote ourselves.

Thank you.