Ahn Cheol-soo: "If the Democratic Party Wants to Nominate Candidates for By-Elections, They Must Pay the Full Election Cost of 83.8 Billion Won"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] As the Democratic Party of Korea has decided to determine whether to field candidates in next year's Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections through a party-wide vote, Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, pointed out that "if the by-elections are to be nominated, the entire election cost of 83.8 billion won, which is covered by taxpayers' money, must be borne by the Democratic Party."

At the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the morning of the 2nd, Ahn said, "If the Democratic Party nominates candidates for next year's by-elections, it will turn the by-elections into a judgment election on the sexual violence party rather than a contest of future policy visions."

Regarding the party-wide vote being conducted that day, Ahn criticized, "It’s like inviting Chinese restaurant owners and asking whether Chinese or Japanese cuisine is better, so the result is obvious," adding, "Like an ostrich that buries its head in the sand thinking it won’t be seen, they are hiding among party members to avoid responsibility."

In response to the Democratic Party’s claim that "fielding candidates and being evaluated by the people is responsible politics," he said, "It’s like knocking on a coffin while sleeping," and pointed out that "it’s like a criminal, not a judge, conducting a self-trial and declaring themselves innocent."

Ahn said, "If the Democratic Party nominates candidates for next year's by-elections, it will destroy the minimal political ethics and conscience remaining in Korean politics, which is struggling trapped in outdated ideological and factional politics," and questioned, "Do they really have to do such a thing?"

He also demanded an answer from President Moon Jae-in. Ahn emphasized, "If the current president, who once declared himself a reformist before the people as party leader, harshly criticized and demanded others to keep promises they did not, and used a virtuous image to get elected, now tries to discard that image like a worn-out object after election, then he should rather abolish the party constitution entirely and declare a party without a constitution or law."

He demanded that if the Democratic Party fields candidates in the by-elections, they should bear the election cost of 83.8 billion won themselves, or that the Democratic Party leadership, including leader Lee Nak-yeon, should offer a public apology at Gwanghwamun Square for the sexual crimes of former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon and former Busan Mayor Oh Keo-don.

He also argued that the Public Official Election Act should block the party that caused the by-election from nominating candidates. Ahn proposed, "On this occasion, in cases of by-elections caused by serious crimes of the elected officials, the nomination of candidates by the party responsible should be legally blocked at the source," adding, "It is necessary to gain public trust through responsible politics by explicitly stipulating this in the Public Official Election Act, not just in party constitutions, thereby strengthening the party’s responsibility for nominations."

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