People Power Party: "The Only Way to Prevent National Chaos Is Lee Jaemyung's Defeat"

People Power Party Lawmakers Issue Joint Statement:
"Venezuela's Reality Must Not Become South Korea's Future"
"Defeat of Lee Jaemyung Is the Only Way to Prevent National Chaos"

On May 27, 107 incumbent members of the National Assembly from the People Power Party issued a statement emphasizing, "Venezuela's reality must not become South Korea's future," and asserted that "the only way to prevent national chaos is for candidate Lee Jaemyung to lose the election."

People Power Party floor leader Kwon Sungdong is holding a press conference announcing the party's appeal to the public on the 27th at the National Assembly. Photo by Yonhap News

Kwon Seongdong, the floor leader of the People Power Party, delivered an appeal to the public at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, that morning, stating, "Candidate Lee Jaemyung is preoccupied with seizing control of the judiciary ahead of the presidential election."

Floor leader Kwon pointed out, "Yesterday, the Democratic Party decided to withdraw some controversial legislative proposals, such as appointing non-lawyers as Supreme Court justices and increasing the number of justices to 100. However, they have not abandoned most of the dictatorial legislation, including increasing the number of Supreme Court justices to 30, enacting a special prosecutor law for the Chief Justice, the so-called 'Presidential Trial Suspension Act,' and revising the law on the dissemination of false information." He criticized this as "nothing more than a superficial gesture."

He continued, "The fundamental reason why the Lee Jaemyung criminal group is obsessed with dictatorial legislation lies in 'candidate Lee Jaemyung' himself," and explained, "Even if Lee Jaemyung is elected president, he will not be able to complete his term unless he neutralizes his own trial."

He further stated, "Candidate Lee Jaemyung received a Supreme Court ruling that overturned and remanded his case for violating the Public Official Election Act with a guilty verdict," and explained, "A remand with a guilty verdict essentially means a confirmed conviction. Since the logic of the first trial's ruling was fully accepted by the Supreme Court, a heavy sentence, such as imprisonment or a fine of at least 1 million won, is inevitable."

Floor leader Kwon emphasized, "Candidate Lee Jaemyung is now devising every possible way to prevent his conviction," and warned, "No matter what means he uses, any attempt to suppress all these trials during a five-year term will inevitably lead to a dictatorship in which the president dominates and controls the judiciary through the legislature."

He added, "Over the past three years, candidate Lee Jaemyung has used legislative power as a shield to defend against his personal legal risks. If Lee Jaemyung becomes president, he will use not only the legislature but also the executive branch as his shield, and will even attempt to seize control of the judiciary. The constitutional order of South Korea will collapse, and extreme chaos will engulf our society."

Floor leader Kwon concluded, "There is only one way to prevent all this national chaos: the defeat of candidate Lee Jaemyung. This is the only way to avoid a national crisis. The reality of Venezuela, where the judiciary was destroyed by increasing the number of Supreme Court justices, must not become South Korea's future," he said.