"They drew lines on the field and told us to innovate"
Ahn Cheolsoo: "I will sever ties with the Yoon couple and stop the Lee administration's runaway"
Lee Junseok, a member of the Reform New Party, commented on Ahn Cheolsoo of the People Power Party resigning as chairman of the Innovation Committee and declaring his candidacy for the party convention, stating, "This is the People Power Party's last chance to break with martial law and impeachment."
On July 7, Lee Junseok wrote on his Facebook page, "It is an unexpected situation that the People Power Party's Innovation Committee has run aground before even getting started, but at the same time, it is also a chronic problem," making this statement.
This comes as Ahn Cheolsoo, who had been appointed as chairman of the Innovation Committee, abruptly resigned just five days after his appointment in protest over the selection of committee members and announced his intention to run in the party convention. When he was nominated as chairman, he diagnosed the People Power Party as being in a coma and said he would wield a 'scalpel,' but after disagreements with the Emergency Committee, he decided, "I will not use a scalpel, but will wield a knife myself."
Regarding this, Lee said, "Personally, I have served as chairman of the Innovation Committee, and when I was party leader, I launched the Innovation Committee, but former President Yoon Sukyeol and the so-called Yoon loyalists resisted and launched a full-scale attack, which led to my resignation as party leader. I believe Ahn Cheolsoo accepted the position of Innovation Committee chairman out of a sense of responsibility, but he was probably continually asked to carry out innovation only within a confined space, as if he were told to draw a 30-pyeong field within a much larger stadium and innovate only within those boundaries."
He continued, "Ahn Cheolsoo must have thought that he could not make a difference with only the authority of the Innovation Committee chairman, so he is attempting a bigger challenge. Since Ahn Cheolsoo has been the only figure to take a clear stance from the early days of martial law, this may be the People Power Party's last opportunity to break with martial law and impeachment."
Ahn Cheolsoo, a member of the People Power Party and chairman of the Innovation Committee, is holding a press conference on the 7th at the National Assembly Communication Office in Yeouido, Seoul, announcing his resignation as chairman and his intention to run in the party convention. Photo by Yonhap News
On this day, Ahn Cheolsoo stated, "If the party refuses personnel reform, what was expected of the Innovation Committee?" announcing his intention to reject the Innovation Committee and run for party leader.
Ahn said, "If I become party leader, I will directly pursue decisive and powerful innovation. I will cut out what needs to be cut out, and boldly remove what needs to be removed. I will make sure our party survives, stop the runaway of the Lee Jaemyung administration, successfully manage next year's local elections, and lay the groundwork for the next general election."
He added, "Above all, I will completely sever ties with former President Yoon Sukyeol and his wife, and put an end to this era of irrationality and unfairness. If we do not change, we will die. I will bring an end to empty innovation, innovation that is nothing but a show, and innovation that is merely for appearances."
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