"President of the Moon," "Honam Party" remarks by Kim Taeheum... Gominjeong demands "Apologize"

Democratic Party lawmaker Go Min-jung is delivering a congratulatory speech at the 'Industrial Digital Transformation Alliance Formation Ceremony' held on the afternoon of October 28 at the Dragon City Hotel in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Eun-young] During a filibuster (unlimited debate), Kim Tae-heum, a member of the People Power Party, made remarks such as "eat snot," "Honam Party," and "Moon President," prompting Go Min-jung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, to demand an apology.

On the 13th, Go posted on her SNS a message titled "Kim Tae-heum, please apologize." She criticized Kim Tae-heum, saying, "Is saying 'eat snot' something to say from the National Assembly podium? Is it acceptable to call another party the 'Honam Party'?"

She continued, "I immediately protested, but what I received in return was 'informal speech.' Is this the level of attitude you have toward fellow lawmakers?"

She added, "The COVID-19 spread is severe. At a time when the ruling and opposition parties should urgently put their heads together, to have profanity flying around in the plenary session of the National Assembly is unacceptable," and said, "The National Assembly is not Kim Tae-heum's outlet for excretion."

Kim Tae-heum, a member of the People Power Party who was indicted over the 20th National Assembly fast-track (rapid processing agenda) clash incident, is answering reporters' questions before attending the first trial held at the Southern District Court in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 21st.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, on the 13th, during a filibuster opposing the amendment to the National Intelligence Service Act, Kim Tae-heum of the People Power Party said, "President Moon Jae-in emphasized cooperation between the ruling and opposition parties several times. The fact that the standing committee chairperson monopolizes everything and then comes back after a few days to talk about cooperation between the ruling and opposition parties is telling the opposition to 'eat snot,'" sparking controversy.

He continued, "I gave up organizing how many times President Moon changed his words," and criticized, "When I saw him give his opening remarks at the National Assembly, I was shocked. I couldn't tell if he was the president of the Republic of Korea or the president of the Moon."

When ruling party lawmakers protested and demanded an apology, he responded, "What is this really? Then tell him not to lie. Go to the president."

Regarding the ruling party's background for passing the amendment to the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Agency (HCIA) Act, he said, "Last year, assigning two recommendation members to the opposition party was probably because they thought the Justice Party or the Honam Party would become a negotiating group. So they pushed it through," adding, "However, since neither the Justice Party nor the Honam Party became a negotiating group and only our party (People Power Party) did, they realized their mistake."

The 'Honam Party' mentioned by Kim appears to refer to the Minsheng Party, which was formed by the merger of the Party for Democracy and Peace, the Alternative New Party, and the Bareunmirae Party just before the last general election.

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