Jo Hae-jin "Democratic Party, Trying to Monopolize Local Council Chairmanships After National Assembly?"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Jo Hae-jin, a member of the Future United Party, criticized the Democratic Party of Korea for pushing a monopoly structure of the ruling party not only in the National Assembly but also in local councils.

On the 19th, Representative Jo stated on Facebook, "Ahead of the second half organizational formation, the Democratic Party's secretariat sent an official letter to local party offices, demanding that the vice-chair positions allocated to the opposition party in the first half be revoked so that the ruling party can monopolize them," criticizing the move.

The official letter from the Democratic Party secretariat, disclosed by Representative Jo's office, contains content stating that the election of the chairperson and vice-chairpersons is decided by party consensus, and those who do not cooperate may face disciplinary action.

Representative Jo pointed out, "In the first half, when the Democratic Party held the chairperson and vice-chair positions, it has been customary to allocate the vice-chair position to the United Party in the second half. However, the Democratic Party has set the method of electing the chairperson and vice-chairpersons as a party consensus and stated that violations will be disciplined, directly intervening in the election of the chairperson group at the central party level."

He added, "Metropolitan and basic council members affiliated with the Democratic Party are sharply divided between the opinion that the vice-chair position should be given to the United Party and the opinion that they must follow the party's stance. In the Gyeonggi region, where the Democratic Party holds the majority, there are even talks of the ruling party appointing the chairperson group without an election process. This is a move that goes against the decentralization policy promoted by President Moon Jae-in's election pledge."

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