Presidential Contender Oh Se-hoon: "I Will Start Gathering the Wisdom of the People" (Comprehensive)

Urgent Briefing: "Must Hold Accountable for Acts Destroying Democracy"
Direct Hit to Leader Lee Jae-myung: "Bulletproof National Assembly Is the Biggest Cause"
Reassessment of National Governance Structure Announced... "Will Consider Solutions"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, regarded as a potential presidential candidate, stated, "As a senior member of the ruling party, I will begin to gather the wisdom of the people along with contemplating solutions for the aftermath of this incident." Defining the recent martial law situation as "an act against the essence of democracy" and urging a thorough investigation, the possibility of Mayor Oh expanding his political influence has increased.

On the afternoon of the 4th, Mayor Oh held an emergency briefing at Seoul City Hall regarding the declaration and lifting of martial law, stating, "It cannot be tolerated for any reason. It was an act that turned back the clock of South Korea's historical progress."

Yonhap News

In particular, Mayor Oh condemned the entry of martial law troops into the National Assembly after the declaration as "a direct violation of the separation of powers." According to the National Assembly, the Ministry of National Defense deployed helicopters 24 times from 11:48 PM the previous night until 1:18 AM on the 4th, bringing in about 230 armed martial law troops into the National Assembly grounds, and separately, about 50 additional troops crossed the fence into the premises. Politicians have criticized the Presidential Office for not notifying the National Assembly of the martial law declaration, pointing out that "the Presidential Office did not comply with any laws."

Mayor Oh also said, "Those involved in the destruction of democracy must be held clearly accountable to show that democracy is not so easily broken." This is interpreted as his intention to confirm responsibility for Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, who proposed the martial law, as well as President Yoon Seok-yeol. On the same day, six opposition parties including the Democratic Party of Korea, the People's Party for Justice, and the Reform Party jointly submitted an impeachment motion against President Yoon to the National Assembly. All 191 opposition lawmakers, excluding members of the People Power Party, participated in the motion. The six opposition parties plan to complete the impeachment vote procedure by the 6th at the earliest, or by the 7th at the latest, after reporting to the plenary session on the 5th.

Mayor Oh also mentioned that Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung bears some responsibility. He added, "There is public concern over the repetition of unfortunate events in constitutional history," and "Considering that the extreme 'bulletproof parliament' of administrative and judicial impeachment for Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung is the biggest cause of this incident, a reexamination of the national governance structure is necessary."

He then stated, "As a senior member of the ruling party, I will contemplate solutions for the aftermath of this incident and begin gathering the wisdom of the people." Until now, when asked about his presidential ambitions, Mayor Oh had maintained a stance of focusing on city administration, but it is expected that he will increase contact with political figures and deliver more aggressive messages in the future. Kim Byung-min, Seoul’s Deputy Mayor for Political Affairs, who joined the briefing, also told reporters after Mayor Oh’s briefing, "As the Mayor of Seoul and a senior member of the ruling party, I judged it appropriate to express a position regarding the current situation," and predicted, "There will be opportunities for further discussions."

Earlier, immediately after President Yoon declared martial law the previous night, Mayor Oh expressed opposition to the martial law. Upon the declaration, Mayor Oh held an emergency executive meeting with the first and second deputy mayors, the deputy mayor for political affairs, the chief of staff, and spokespersons, urging them to "do their best to ensure that citizens' daily lives, including livelihood, prices, distribution, and transportation, remain unchanged." He also canceled his scheduled business trip to India and Malaysia from the 4th to the 11th, citing the martial law declaration as the reason.