People Power Party: "Lee's Four-Year Re-election Amendment Is Wordplay... An Insult to the People and the Constitution"

"Lee Must Explain His Repeated Reversals of Position"

On May 18, the People Power Party criticized Lee Jaemyung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, for his proposal to amend the Constitution to introduce a four-year presidential term with the possibility of re-election. The party called it "dazzling flip-flopping" and described it as "a serious insult to the people and the Constitution."

On this day, the People Power Party’s Special Committee on Constitutional Amendment issued a statement saying, "When it comes to the will to amend the law or the content of such amendments, one must be especially prudent. However, Lee Jaemyung's light and dazzling flip-flopping is dizzying."

Yonhap News

Lee presented his constitutional amendment proposal via Facebook, focusing on the introduction of a four-year presidential term with the possibility of re-election and a runoff voting system. He also suggested that such an amendment could be put to a national referendum as early as the local elections next year or the general election in 2028.

The committee stated, "Lee not only ignored the People Power Party's proposal for constitutional amendment, but also embarrassed his own party's elders by saying he would pursue the amendment and then retracting it. When National Assembly Speaker Woo Wonshik proposed holding a constitutional referendum alongside the presidential election, Lee suddenly changed his stance, saying, 'Overcoming the current unrest is far more important right now.'"

The committee continued, "It seems that, with the constitutional amendment issue likely to become a topic ahead of the TV debate, Lee hastily made this announcement as a stopgap measure, only to change his words again later. We question whether, after making a constitutional amendment pledge now, if elected, he will once again overturn his promise by saying, 'Did you really think I would amend the Constitution?'"

The committee emphasized, "Even with today's belated proposal for constitutional amendment, this should not be glossed over. Even now, Lee must explain his repeated reversals of position and habitual flip-flopping, and apologize to the people."