Cho Gapje Criticizes Nomination of Lee Hyehoon as Minister
"Did She Oppose Impeachment Because Martial Law and Election Fraud Conspiracies Were Trivial?"
Lee Hyehoon: "I Have Believed Martial Law Was Wrong From the Start"
As former Saenuri Party (now People Power Party) lawmaker Lee Hyehoon was nominated as the first Minister of Planning and Budget for the Jaemyung Lee administration, causing confusion in the political sphere, Gapje Cho, CEO of Cho Gapje Dotcom, voiced his criticism. Cho, a conservative commentator, has generally expressed a relatively favorable stance toward the Jaemyung Lee administration.
Conservative commentator Gapje Cho criticized former lawmaker Hyehoon Lee's past actions regarding the impeachment and detention of former President Seokyeol Yoon. On the 28th, former lawmaker Lee was nominated as the Minister of Planning and Budget for the Jaemyung Lee administration. CBS YouTube
On the 29th, Cho wrote on his social media, "Betrayal is the true nature of the 'Yoon Again' (supporters of former President Seokyeol Yoon) faction," and added, "Did Lee Hyehoon, who fervently supported Park Geunhye's impeachment, consider Yoon Seokyeol's illegal martial law and election fraud conspiracy theories trivial and therefore oppose impeachment?"
Cho further stated, "Defending Yoon Seokyeol, whom the Constitutional Court defined as a betrayer of the people's trust, is a betrayal of the Constitution and democracy," and added, "The betrayals of the 'Yoon Again' faction have served as a shield for the Jaemyung Lee administration. No matter how many mistakes the administration makes, public opinion that it is still better than the 'Yoon Again' group dilutes criticism of the administration's missteps." He continued, "It is only natural that the President would select Lee Hyehoon, one of their own, as a gesture of appreciation for the efforts of the 'Yoon Again' faction." In doing so, he pointed out Lee's past actions regarding the impeachment and detention of former President Yoon.
On the 28th, former lawmaker Lee Hyehoon was nominated as the Minister of Planning and Budget, causing a stir in the political circle. Photo by The Asia Business Daily
On the 28th, Lee's nomination as Minister of Planning and Budget caused a stir in the political community. Last year, Lee ran as the People Power Party candidate for Jung-Seongdong district in Seoul during the general election but was defeated, and earlier this year, she served as the head of the policy division for Kim Moonsoo's presidential campaign in the People Power Party.
Notably, earlier this year, she took the stage several times at rallies opposing the impeachment of former President Yoon, stating, "The impeachment procedure itself is illegal," and "Forces shaking the nation, like the Democratic Party, are insurrectionists." After the arrest warrant was issued for former President Yoon in January, she argued during a TV debate, "A significant portion of the public cannot understand how a sitting president, who was already in custody and could not flee, could be detained based on a 15-character decision citing concerns over destruction of evidence."
On this day, the People Power Party urgently convened a Supreme Council meeting and decided to expel Lee. The party stated, "As a regional party chair, Lee agreed to serve as a cabinet member in the Jaemyung Lee administration, thereby willingly collaborating with the current regime. With just six months left until the local elections, she committed the worst act of betrayal against the people and party members," and added, "We strongly condemn President Lee and Lee Hyehoon for reducing the cabinet post responsible for the nation's finances to a political bargaining chip. We demand a public apology and urge them to take responsible action before the public as soon as possible."
In an interview with Yonhap News, Lee stated, "It has long been my conviction that, when it comes to people's livelihoods and the economy, we must rise above ideology and partisan interests," and added, "It is true that I have a conservative economic philosophy, but I have consistently emphasized the need for economic democratization even within the conservative camp. Upon receiving this offer, I felt it was a sincere proposal and decided to join the cabinet, believing I could put my long-held conviction for economic democratization into practice."
Regarding the 12·3 Martial Law, she said, "My view that the martial law was wrong has not changed from the beginning until now. When I first heard about it, I told fellow lawmakers that it was 'something that should never happen.' However, as a regional party chair, there was one occasion when I followed the party's stance. Nevertheless, I am firmly convinced that martial law must never happen again," she emphasized.
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