[Summary] Ahn Cheol-soo "Is there a 'Sangwang' behind Oh Se-hoon?" vs Lee Jun-seok "Mind your own 'female assistant' situation"

Tensions Over Opposition Candidate Unification
Candidate Ahn: "Chairman Kim Jong-in's Remarks Cross the Line"
Suspicion Over Unification Talks: "Is There a 'Retired King'?"
Lee Jun-seok: "Our Camp Has Young 'Retired Kings'"
"Do You Know Everyone Left After Listening to the Female Situation Manager?" Criticism

Ahn Cheol-soo, the People's Party candidate for Seoul mayor, is giving an interview to the press after expressing his position on the unification of opposition candidates for Seoul mayor at the National Assembly Communication Office on the 16th. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Ju-hyung] With the Seoul mayoral by-election just over a month away, conflicts surrounding the unification of opposition candidates are intensifying. As Ahn Cheol-soo, the candidate of the People’s Party, raised suspicions of the so-called 'Sangwangron' (Retired King Theory) targeting Kim Jong-in, the emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, former Future United Party (formerly People Power Party) Supreme Council member Lee Jun-seok responded by mentioning a 'female situation manager.'

On the 16th, Lee wrote on his Facebook, "Candidate Ahn is openly trying to sow discord within the party by criticizing Chairman Kim Jong-in as a 'Sangwang' (Retired King)," and asked, "Have you heard that there is a 'female situation manager' controlling him?"

He continued, "According to Ahn Cheol-soo’s calculation method, there are about 300 young 'Sangwangs' in our camp," and explained, "Even today, the TV debate preparation by the candidate is taking place freely with ideas from dozens of young 'Sangwangs' being presented."

He added, "Let us not forget that during several past elections, people who helped Candidate Ahn hinted at the existence of a 'female situation manager' and left," and criticized, "Does he realize that everyone around him has left while only listening to the words of the female situation manager?" The 'female situation manager' mentioned by Lee appears to refer to Kim Mi-kyung, a professor at Seoul National University and Ahn’s wife.

Lee sharpened his remarks by saying, "Don’t talk about Chairman Kim Jong-in as a traitor or a 'Sangwang' now," and "Isn’t that shameless? Treat him well while he is here."

Former Lee Jun-seok, Supreme Council Member of the United Future Party (currently People Power Party) / Photo by Yonhap News

On the same day, Candidate Ahn appeared on a CBS radio interview and criticized Chairman Kim, who had called him "someone who can’t even debate properly," saying, "I have always shown respect as a senior politician and a partner for opposition unification, but yesterday he crossed the line," and added, "He insulted not only the unification partner but all opposition supporters."

Regarding the difficulties in unification negotiations with People Power Party candidate Oh Se-hoon, Ahn said, "The People Power Party negotiation team does not recognize the agreements made between the candidates. It seems it cannot be done by Oh’s will alone," and raised suspicions, "Is there a 'Sangwang' behind the candidate?" This is interpreted as implying that Chairman Kim might be exerting influence over the negotiations behind candidate Oh.

Kim Jong-in, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party / Photo by Yonhap News

Meanwhile, with the April 7 Seoul mayoral by-election about three weeks away, the tension over opposition candidate unification is sharpening. Previously, on the 15th, Chairman Kim criticized Candidate Ahn at a campaign committee meeting held at the Yeouido central party office, saying, "Someone who can’t even debate properly cannot become a candidate."

Regarding Ahn’s side proposing to remove party names and candidate numbers from the opposition unification opinion polls, Kim said, "It is natural for the ballot paper to have the party name and candidate number when you go to vote. Is it common sense to suggest removing that?" and criticized, "What kind of person who lacks confidence would want to run?"

In response, Candidate Ahn immediately rebutted on Facebook, writing, "I don’t know where such absurd words come from or what the intention is," and added, "I hope you understand that many opposition supporters are sighing at Chairman Kim’s stubbornness and emotional remarks."

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