"Stop Listening to YouTuber Stories and Start Researching Conservative Values"... United Party's 'Reflection'

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The United Future Party has been urged to stop targeting the centrist voters and instead begin researching values unique to the right-wing. The argument is that the centrist voters cannot simply be won over by targeting them; rather, they must be drawn in by appealing to values. The behavior of being swayed by conservative YouTubers was also criticized.

On the 18th, Jang Kyung-sang, Secretary General of the National Management Research Institute, said at the 'General Election Evaluation and Media Environment Analysis Seminar' hosted by the United Future Party Media Special Committee, "The center should be drawn in by sharing values; they cannot be caught by chasing after them like hunting."

Secretary General Jang mentioned the reduction of working hours, saying, "Centrists share the conservative view that the economic impact of reducing working hours is negative, yet they align with progressives on the issue of reducing working hours," adding, "We assume centrists are 'people who are not swept up in factional logic and make rational judgments with a balanced perspective,' but they do not actually make rational judgments."

He also said, "Whenever problems arise, they go to the wrong place (YouTube) to find answers. YouTubers are people who have no place among the left and have come outside, and they have never seriously considered right-wing thoughts," criticizing, "We should stop listening to what YouTubers say."

He continued, "We need to create a sustainable group by incorporating a network of right-wing talents into the Yeouido Research Institute (Yeoyeon)," and added, "The right-wing needs research that embodies right-wing values. Such research must start now."

Secretary General Jang pointed out, "The 2022 voter landscape shows a 7 to 3 ratio with high unfavorable views toward conservative parties," and said, "It is a completely tilted playing field; from the conservative party’s perspective, only those aged 60 and above have favorable views, while all under 60 have become unfavorable."

He advised, "Although the right-wing talks a lot about freedom and democracy, it falls into elitism and cronyism and fails to practice freedom, democracy, and competition. The right-wing must practice first and innovate by involving youth, rank-and-file members, and women at their levels."

In the subsequent discussion, elected member Kim Woong said, "I talked with people in their 20s, and while we think it’s because of COVID-19, young people hardly mentioned COVID-19," and added, "Our party wants to deny it, but I felt we were left behind by the world," presenting this as a cause of failure.

He said, "The British Conservative Party in 1945 was exactly like this. Having experienced a wartime economy, the people were accustomed to the national system and mobilization economy and trusted the state-led survival solutions, but the party insisted on laissez-faire values, creating a huge gap," and added, "We were about ten years behind the trend."

Lee Yoon-jung, former co-chair of the Yeoyeon Future Forum, said, "We are falling behind in the language war with the Democratic Party. We need to put on new clothes, but we have missed many parts in that regard," and suggested, "As a small proposal, let’s stop using informal speech, slander, and lies. Let’s start from there."

Cheon Ha-ram, former candidate for Jeonnam Suncheon Gwangyang Gokseong Gurye, said, "We need to change the subject. Our party always starts statements with 'President Moon Jae-in' or 'The Democratic Party,' but from now on, we should start with 'The United Future Party,'" raising his voice, "Let’s not always start by criticizing the government and ruling party; let’s first present what our opinions are."

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