"‘Hong Verification is Over’ Direct Hit on Kim Jong-in... ‘Confession of Donghwa Bank Slush Fund, I Received It’"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Former Liberty Korea Party leader Hong Joon-pyo delivered a direct blow to Kim Jong-in, the former chief election campaign committee chairman who accepted the position of emergency committee chairman to lead the United Future Party's emergency committee. Hong stated, "I personally obtained a confession of bribery from him during the Donghwa Bank slush fund incident," in response to Kim's remarks in a media interview where he described Hong as a "vetted figure" and expressed his intention to nominate presidential candidates born in the 1970s.

On the 25th, Hong wrote on his Facebook, "I do not want to interfere in internal party matters at all, but I judged this to be too much, so I am writing a few words," expressing his stance.

He explained, "Before the April 2012 general election, Kim Jong-in, then the Saenuri Party emergency committee member, mentioned my nomination issue in Dongdaemun District 2, saying 'You should not nominate someone who has resigned as party leader.' After reading this article, I declared, 'I have no intention of undergoing nomination screening by a bribery suspect I investigated,' and did not apply for nomination at all," revealing the circumstances at the time.

He added, "During the 1993 Donghwa Bank slush fund incident, at the request of Chief Prosecutor Ham Seung-hee, I went into the prosecutor's office on his behalf and obtained a confession of bribery from former Economic Secretary Kim Jong-in within 20 minutes. Since there were no suitable candidates, the party strategically nominated me in Dongdaemun District 2, and although I knew I would lose, I reluctantly ran," he said.

Until the 17th, Hong had appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' naming Kim as the right person to take the emergency committee chairman position. However, after Kim made remarks on the same radio show demanding an effectively indefinite term and full authority, Hong criticized on Facebook, saying, "Requesting unlimited authority without a time limit is an act of underestimating the party too much." Hong explained, "Although time has passed, I wanted to let this go, but seeing his recent series of greedy remarks, I felt a crisis that the party might fall apart, so I had no choice but to reveal past events."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In another post on the same day, he said, "After such a crushing defeat, attempting to install another corrupt emergency committee chairman through the same procedures could drive the party to ruin," adding, "The defeated leadership should all step down cleanly, and among the elected members, the most senior lawmaker should act as chairperson, and the emergency committee should be entrusted to a senior advisor from among the party elders at the elected members' general meeting."

Hong's successive direct attacks on Kim appear to be influenced by Kim's recent evaluation of existing presidential candidates within the party, such as Hong and lawmaker Yoo Seung-min, as "vetted figures." Kim recently stated in an interview with Chosun Ilbo, "I hope a person born in the 1970s with vision and ability will emerge as a national leader," signaling his plan to put young politicians at the forefront.

Hong has repeatedly expressed his intention to challenge for the presidency after returning to the party. He called himself "the owner who has protected the party for 25 years" on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' expressing his intention to rejoin the party, and firmly declared his candidacy for the 2022 presidential election on Facebook, saying, "I will decorate the final finale without falling anymore."

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