Gwon Seong-dong Expressed Frustration Over No Response to His Request for a Private Meeting
Gwon Seong-dong, the floor leader of the People Power Party, requested a private meeting with President Yoon Seok-yeol last year, but it has been confirmed that President Yoon did not respond to the request. This fact was confirmed by former People Power Party lawmaker Kim Woong during his appearance on CBS Radio's 'Park Jae-hong's One-on-One Show' on the 16th.
People Power Party floor leader Kwon Seong-dong paused briefly as if choked up while mentioning President Yoon Seok-yeol during an emergency party meeting held at the National Assembly on the 16th. Photo by Yonhap News
Earlier, during a party meeting held at the National Assembly that day, Floor Leader Gwon briefly choked up and was unable to continue speaking while announcing plans to propose a self-initiated 'Emergency Martial Law Special Prosecutor Act.' He tearfully expressed difficulty in accepting the situation where a special prosecutor law had to be proposed to investigate President Yoon the day after his arrest. Gwon said, "Personally, President Yoon Seok-yeol has been a long-time friend of mine," and added, "Last night, after the arrest, I was very distressed, blaming myself, thinking 'I should have done better,' and felt a deep disillusionment with politics, unable to sleep properly."
Former lawmaker Kim referred to Gwon’s statement about President Yoon being a long-time friend and explained that there is a difference in their perspectives. Kim said, "Floor Leader Gwon truly thinks of the president as a friend and has affection for him, but the president does not consider Gwon a friend. He thinks of him as a subordinate," adding, "I don't think it’s to the extent of showing tears."
He continued, "About a year ago, I told Floor Leader Gwon, 'Since you are the one who put (President Yoon) in the presidential seat, you should take responsibility by speaking frankly. If this continues, an accident might happen,'" and added, "At that time, Floor Leader Gwon told me, 'After hearing that, I requested a private meeting (with President Yoon), but I haven’t received a response for several months,' showing how frustrated he was." This reveals President Yoon’s lukewarm attitude toward Floor Leader Gwon.
Floor Leader Gwon is regarded as one of the figures who brought Yoon Seok-yeol, then a leading presidential candidate in 2021, into the political arena. Subsequently, he served as the head of the comprehensive support headquarters for Yoon’s campaign and closely assisted the president’s presidential activities. There has been analysis that after stepping down from the floor leader position in September 2022, his distance from President Yoon increased.
President Yoon Seok-yeol, who was arrested by the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Agency on charges of leading an insurrection, is moving to Seoul Detention Center after completing his investigation at the agency in Gwacheon-si, Gyeonggi Province on the afternoon of the 15th. Joint coverage
Meanwhile, former lawmaker Kim, who appeared on the same broadcast the previous day, sharply criticized President Yoon, saying he is "portraying himself as a victim and martyr."
He said, "He is creating an image of himself as a tragic king who was ousted while resolutely defending liberal democracy and resisting unjust foreign invasion," and added, "I think the president just acted out of his own temper, declaring martial law. The National Election Commission got involved in that."
He continued, "If there had been election fraud, the president could have revealed it from his position," and criticized, "But now, to say that his actions were for democracy and to eliminate election fraud is dramatizing himself."
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