Kwon Young-se: "Yoon Does Not Consider Leaving the Party Like Park Geun-hye... If There Is a Problem, It Can Be Fixed"

"Does Expulsion Truly Mean Severing Ties?"

On the 22nd, Kwon Young-se, the Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, firmly opposed the calls for the expulsion and dismissal of President Yoon Seok-yeol from the party. The expulsion and dismissal of President Yoon, which former People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon had pushed for, has effectively been shelved.

On the same day, during an appearance on TV Chosun, Chairman Kwon spoke about his relationship with President Yoon, saying, "In the past, during Hong Joon-pyo's leadership, there was an expulsion action taken against former President Park Geun-hye," but he drew a clear line by adding, "We are not considering such (expulsion) measures." He stated, "It does not mean accepting everything about President Yoon, but for the parts he has done well, we want him to do even better, and for the parts we think are problematic, they should be corrected," and questioned, "Would expelling President Yoon like former President Park Geun-hye in the past sever ties?" He continued, "I think it is inappropriate to artificially show an intention to sever ties."

Earlier, former People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon had ordered the convening of the Ethics Committee to expel and dismiss President Yoon after the president made a public address asserting the background and legitimacy of the December 3 emergency martial law declaration. However, Chairman Kwon appears to have withdrawn Han's directive.

Kwon Young-se, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, is speaking at the Emergency Response Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 16th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

Regarding the party's response direction after the presidential impeachment, often referred to as the "River of Impeachment," he said, "When crossing the River of Impeachment, we must overcome it by correcting the wrong policies or wrong behaviors that existed before," and added, "I do not think that excluding one or two main figures will allow us to cross the River of Impeachment."

He was also reserved about the early presidential election that would be held if the Constitutional Court accepts the impeachment of President Yoon. Chairman Kwon said, "We are not preparing for an early election," and explained, "The Constitutional Court has just started the impeachment trial, and we do not know when it will end, nor do we know what the conclusion will be even if it ends." He emphasized, "We are not preparing for an early election on the assumption that the Constitutional Court will accept the impeachment."

Regarding President Yoon's emergency martial law, he avoided direct evaluation by leaving the judgment to the courts and others. He only mentioned, "No one knows exactly what the president did, so the Constitutional Court and the courts will make a judgment by synthesizing the president's claims and the opposing claims."

He also argued that leniency should be considered toward the right-wing extremist forces who attacked the Seoul Western District Court.

Chairman Kwon said, "There are many talks about the need to distance ourselves from the so-called hardline right-wing, but I do not think it is particularly urgent to either distance ourselves or not," and added, "It is necessary to respond flexibly by examining each specific claim or action, firmly rejecting unreasonable claims, and accepting reasonable ones if possible."