'Major Ruling Party + Kim Jong-in's Conviction' Economic Order Upheaval

Kim Jong-in, Emergency Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, and Joo Ho-young, Floor Leader, are attending the Emergency Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 28th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Cheol-eung] Kim Jong-in, the Emergency Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, is not significantly different from the Democratic Party of Korea in terms of economic identity and orientation. Although he has crossed between progressive and conservative parties, he seems to regard realizing his philosophy and conviction of economic democratization as a personal mission.

"This time, when I tried to include 'economic democratization' in the Saenuri Party's platform and policies, people who opposed it rose up. So-called economic experts within the party led the opposition, saying economic democratization does not align with conservative ideology and even made absurd claims that it has socialist undertones. Economic democratization is explicitly stated in the Constitution, so does that mean our Constitution is a socialist constitution? Protecting the Constitution is the foundation of conservatism, yet these people are fake conservatives who do not even properly understand our Constitution."

This is an excerpt from Kim's memoir, There Is No Eternal Power, published last March. It recounts events from his time in the Saenuri Party and vividly reveals Kim's perspective. Naturally, his views on the various voices recently raised within the People Power Party are no different.

"Honestly, I don't know if each person is speaking with an accurate understanding and awareness of the issue, or if they are just reflecting what they hear from outside." This was a criticism directed at the negative voices within the party regarding economic democratization bills such as the 'Fair Economy 3 Acts,' suggesting that they either do not understand well or merely echo the positions of the business community.

His conviction appears to be the normalization of the market through rational regulation. His view of the business community is not favorable. In the 2013 publication Asking 14 Mentors of Economic Democratization, Kim sharply stated, "Regarding the greed of conglomerates, we must first stop the destruction of jobs before even thinking about job creation."

Considering the Democratic Party's overwhelming number of seats and Kim's convictions, there is a high likelihood of a tectonic shift in the rules of the economy in the future. Looking at the amendment to the Commercial Act that Kim himself proposed in 2016, it includes provisions such as derivative lawsuits allowing shareholders owning more than 1% of shares to hold subsidiary directors accountable, the formation of a neutral outside director nomination committee, and appointing auditors separately from other directors. These align with the bills currently being promoted by the government and ruling party. Going a step further, he had even tried to introduce mandatory cumulative voting rights for minority shareholders when appointing two or more directors.

Given that he has criticized large corporations' entry into neighborhood markets, he may also view restrictions on store openings or business regulations on large retail conglomerates positively. On the other hand, this could be a flashpoint causing discord within the People Power Party.

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