Woo Sang-ho "Should Have Given Primary Election Opportunity... Jeong Bong-ju, Please Bear It Even If It's Unfair"

"Minimizing Arbitrary Decisions by Leadership Is the Rule, but Political Considerations Arise as Election Season Approaches"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Wondara] Woo Sang-ho, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said regarding former lawmaker Jeong Bong-ju being disqualified as a Democratic Party preliminary candidate, "He should have been given a chance to run in the primary." He also told former lawmaker Jeong, "Please endure even if it feels unfair."

On the morning of the 20th, Woo appeared on TBS Radio and said, "Our party's nomination rule principle was to minimize arbitrary judgments by the leadership as much as possible and to reflect voters' opinions to the greatest extent, but as the election approaches, it seems political judgments are coming into play. I find this somewhat regrettable."

He added, "The leadership seems very determined to minimize any factors that could negatively affect this election," and said, "For those who are not subject to disqualification due to illegal acts, wouldn't it be better to ask the voters as much as possible in the future?"

When asked, "Do you think this is similar to former spokesperson Kim Eui-gyeom?" he replied, "Personally, I think it was right to give everyone a chance to run in the primary." He continued, "But since the leadership has already made a decision, what can be done even if it feels unfair? If they contest it, wouldn't it become more chaotic? So, even if it feels unfair, they should endure and bear it."

Woo, who served as the floor leader of the Democratic Party, also criticized the leadership's policy regarding former spokesperson Kim, who previously declared he would not run, and Moon Seok-gyun, the son of National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang and the Democratic Party's Uijeongbu Gap standing vice chairman.

Regarding former spokesperson Kim, Woo appeared on TBS Radio on the 3rd and said, "I don't quite understand why only former spokesperson Kim is excluded from the system nomination," and pointed out, "The body that decides whether this person is qualified as a primary candidate or not, and whether to grant the nomination, should be the Nomination Management Committee, not the Verification Committee."

About Vice Chairman Moon, he said, "If there is no one other than Moon Seok-gyun who can win in Uijeongbu, what would you do?" and added, "It is necessary to consider the sentiments of local voters, and constantly escalating moral issues is not desirable in a general election."

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