Geum Tae-seop: "Welcome Ahn's Acceptance of Third-Party Unification... Let's Hold a Debate Before Lunar New Year"

[Asia Economy reporters Naju-seok and Park Joon-yi] Geum Tae-seop, a former lawmaker who has entered the Seoul mayoral by-election as a preliminary candidate, expressed his welcome regarding Ahn Cheol-soo, the People's Party preliminary candidate for Seoul mayor, accepting the proposal for a third-party unified candidacy. Candidate Geum requested the establishment of a swift unification procedure and the holding of a debate before the Lunar New Year.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 3rd, Candidate Geum said through social networking service (SNS) Facebook, "I welcome Candidate Ahn's decision to accept my unification proposal," adding, "I will gladly accept the conditions you mentioned."

Earlier, Candidate Ahn held a press briefing at the National Assembly and proposed a multi-stage unification plan that involves a primary election among opposition parties excluding the People Power Party, followed by unification with the People Power Party, thereby indicating his willingness to accept Candidate Geum's third-party unification proposal.

Regarding the opposition unification, Candidate Ahn presented the following conditions: ▲opposition unification ▲respect for the spirit of the constitution and public common sense ▲refraining from negative campaigning or personal defamation ▲acceptance of primary election results ▲secondary unification with the People Power Party.

Candidate Geum stated, "The unification primary is not an end in itself," and urged, "For victory in the general election, it must be a winning unification that builds trust in the opposition and expands the support base." He added, "In preparation for the sharp scrutiny of the general election, further self-verification is necessary," and said, "Through this process, a Seoul mayoral candidate whom citizens can proudly choose will be decided."

He also requested the prompt implementation of the unification procedure. Candidate Geum said, "Now that an agreement has been reached, we must meet and proceed with the process as soon as possible," and requested, "I hope we can at least have a fierce debate in front of Seoul citizens before the Lunar New Year."

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