Ahn Cheol-soo and Geum Tae-seop's TV Debate on the 15th Falls Through... "No Completion of Practical Discussions"

Unification of the Third Zone Faces Difficulties from the Start

People's Party leader Ahn Cheol-soo and former independent lawmaker Geum Tae-seop are meeting on the afternoon of the 4th at the National Assembly Members' Office Building in Yeouido, Seoul, to negotiate the unification method of the 'third zone' and shaking hands.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] The first TV debate schedule between Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, and former lawmaker Geum Tae-seop, both candidates in the April 7 Seoul mayoral by-election, was suddenly canceled. It appears that discussions for a unified opposition primary in the third zone have reached a deadlock at the practical negotiation stage.

On the afternoon of the 14th, Geum Tae-seop’s campaign released a notice to the media stating, "It has become difficult to proceed with the first TV debate with Leader Ahn as scheduled," and explained, "The scheduled debate date is tomorrow, but practical negotiations have not yet been completed."

Earlier, on the 9th, the practical negotiation teams of Leader Ahn and former lawmaker Geum announced after discussions that they would hold two TV debates on the 15th and 25th, respectively.

On that day, Geum Tae-seop’s campaign explained, "I originally proposed starting the debates before the Lunar New Year and hoped to have as many debates as possible, but I did not insist on my position and fully accepted the other side’s opinions." However, they added, "I cannot help but express regret over the situation where, even after agreeing on unification, only practical negotiations have continued for more than two weeks."

They further stated, "As long as fierce exchanges between candidates are guaranteed, I will actively accept Candidate Ahn’s side’s opinions regarding the debate format and other matters," and expressed hope that "a proper debate will be held as soon as possible and a beautiful primary election can be conducted."

After the notice was distributed, Ahn Hye-jin, spokesperson for the People’s Party, held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Hall and countered, "Since Candidate Geum’s side publicly hopes for a proper debate to be held as soon as possible, we urge them to immediately engage in the unification practical discussions they are currently refusing."

Spokesperson Ahn added, "Since the selection of broadcasters and the format of the TV debate cannot be decided by one side’s unilateral claims or insistence, I believe both sides should overcome their differences through the prompt resumption of practical discussions."

In fact, during the ongoing practical negotiations, both sides’ teams have struggled to reach consensus on the broadcaster and debate format. Ahn’s side’s team expressed surprise at Geum’s side issuing a notice without agreement, saying, "We are taken aback that they released a notice without reaching an agreement with us." The team acknowledged, "It is true that practical negotiations have not yet concluded," but pointed out, "The problem is that Geum’s side is making excessive demands and is unwilling to negotiate at all."

On the other hand, Geum’s side’s team argued, "Even when we proposed selecting media outlets capable of broadcasting the TV debate on the 15th, (Ahn’s side) did not accept it," and added, "Since Ahn’s side insists on only the media and format they have chosen, it is difficult for us to accept."

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