'Democratic Party's 5th Recruit' Oh Young-hwan on 'Cho Kuk Remarks' Controversy: "Will Speak Carefully as a Politician"

Oh Young-hwan's Controversial Remark on "Cho Kuk's Children Issue, Common Practice Among Parents at the Time"

Oh Young-hwan, a former firefighter and the 5th talent recruit of the Democratic Party of Korea, is giving a greeting speech at the recruitment event held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 7th. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Heo Midam] Oh Younghwan (31), a former firefighter and the 5th talent recruit for the Democratic Party of Korea's general election, stated on the 8th regarding the controversy over former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk's children's admission fraud allegations, "I have resolved to speak cautiously as a politician."

Oh said on YTN Radio's 'Noh Younghee's Start of a New Morning' that "I realized how frightening a politician's words can be."

He continued, "I was also a student studying in the same era as (former Minister Cho's children). However, the university admission methods at that time were very different from now. I only intended to say that 'judging past standards by today's criteria is problematic.'"

Earlier, at the Democratic Party's talent recruitment announcement press conference held on the 7th, Oh sparked controversy by claiming that the admission-related allegations concerning former Minister Cho's children were "exaggerated reports of actions that all parents commonly practiced at the time."

Oh Young-hwan, a former firefighter and the fifth talent recruit of the Democratic Party of Korea, and his wife, "Rock Climbing Queen" Kim Ja-in, are taking a commemorative photo with Lee Hae-chan, the party leader (left), and Yoon Ho-jung, the secretary-general, at the recruitment event held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 7th. Photo by Yonhap News

Regarding his reason for joining the Democratic Party, he said, "There are limits to the people you can find on the ground. But if laws and systems improve to allow more people to be recruited and those who know the field well enter politics, I am confident the government will make greater efforts."

He added, "What I need to focus on now is studying," and said, "Rather than political study, I need time to organize what I have felt at the firefighting site and study and consider how to reflect that in policy."

Oh also mentioned his wife, sport climber Kim Ja-in. He said, "When I told her I was going to start politics, she said, 'If you always do your best responsibly as you have done, you will do well,' and 'I will trust and support you.' Thanks to those words, I was able to muster the courage to come here."

Regarding established politics, Oh said, "If I enter the National Assembly, I will start by listening to the concerns of the youth," adding, "To treat a problem, an accurate diagnosis of where it hurts is important. There are parts that established politics has not listened to sufficiently."

Born in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province, and a graduate of Nakdong High School in Busan, Oh began his firefighting career in 2010 as a 119 rescue worker at Gwangjin Fire Station and recently worked as a field worker at the Central 119 Rescue Headquarters.

In 2015, he published a book titled 'A Firefighter's Prayer,' which tells the stories of frontline firefighters doing their best in harsh conditions to rescue lives and extinguish fires.

Oh donated most of the royalties from this book to children in difficult circumstances, elderly living alone, and families of firefighters who died in the line of duty.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.