Park Hongkeun’s CBS Radio Interview
"Jaemyung Lee Is Not Someone Who Would Give Special Support to a Particular Individual"
Hongkeun Park, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea who has declared his candidacy for Seoul mayor, expressed his honest feelings regarding President Jaemyung Lee’s praise of Seongdong District Mayor Wonoh Jeong’s administrative abilities, saying, “Frankly, I find it both puzzling and bewildering.” Mayor Jeong is considered a leading contender for the Seoul mayoral race.
On December 9, during an appearance on CBS Radio’s ‘Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show,’ Assemblyman Park said, “The President probably didn’t expect this kind of reaction either,” and added, “It’s true that Mayor Jeong has benefited in various ways, and personally, I do feel a bit envious. However, the President is not someone who would single out a particular person, especially someone being discussed as a candidate for public office, to give special support.”
The previous day, President Lee posted on social media an article about a regular public opinion poll in Seongdong District showing a 92.9% satisfaction rate with district administration, along with a message praising Mayor Jeong. President Lee wrote, “It seems Mayor Jeong really is doing a great job. My own satisfaction ratings as mayor of Seongnam were quite high, but I don’t think I could even compare.”
With the local elections just six months away, President Lee’s direct mention of a Seoul mayoral candidate has sparked controversy, with some speculating that Mayor Jeong is the President’s “favorite” (reflecting President Lee’s preference).
Assemblyman Park explained, “The President has his own style. I think he just happened to see an article and thought, ‘This is a good time to give some praise and make a name known.’ In the past as well, the President has often approached issues not too seriously or heavily, but with a sense of fun and wit.”
He added, “I don’t think he posted it this time with deep consideration of the potential repercussions.”
Assemblyman Park continued, “President Jaemyung Lee has a preference for those with a background as a team leader, and it’s only natural to want to praise people who do their work well. So I understand it as simply wanting to give some praise.”
Regarding criticism from some opposition figures who claim this is a “signal flare” for presidential intervention in the election, Park responded, “The People Power Party seems to assume President Jaemyung Lee will do the same because of past incidents involving Park Geun-hye’s abuse of state affairs or Yun Seok-yeol and Kim Keon-hee’s involvement in candidate nominations. However, the Democratic Party is not swayed or controlled by any particular individual.”
Meanwhile, the mentioned public opinion poll was commissioned by Seongdong District to Korea Research and conducted from November 21 to 24 among 1,500 adult men and women aged 18 or older residing in Seongdong District. The survey was conducted using 100% wireless phone interviews with randomly generated mobile numbers, with a sampling error of ±2.5% at a 95% confidence level. The results were weighted by region, gender, and age according to Ministry of the Interior and Safety resident registration population statistics.
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