Oh Se-hoon and Ahn Cheol-soo Abruptly Postpone Evening Meeting... "Any Issues with Unification?"

"Postponed Considering Ongoing Polls" Official Explanation
Both Candidates Confirmed Morning Schedule, Changed in Afternoon
After Ahn's Negative Remarks, Oh Expressed Displeasure

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] The meeting between Oh Se-hoon, the People Power Party candidate, and Ahn Cheol-soo, the People’s Party candidate, who are competing for the united opposition candidate for Seoul mayor, has been abruptly postponed. While it was explained that this was due to the ongoing unification opinion poll, there are also observations that emotional rifts caused by negative controversies played a role.

On the 22nd, both Oh’s and Ahn’s sides stated respectively, "Tonight’s meeting between the two candidates has been postponed until after the unification candidate is confirmed, considering the current ongoing opinion poll," and "Each will focus on their own schedules."

Both sides explained, "The will for unification remains firm and is still ongoing," and "After the opinion poll ends, not only the candidates but also members from both camps will gather together."

People Power Party's Seoul mayoral candidate Oh Se-hoon is greeting attendees at the Shared Daycare Center meeting held at Seocho 4-dong Community Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 22nd. 2021.3.22 Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers [Image source=Yonhap News]

Although both sides cite the opinion poll and scheduling as reasons for postponing the meeting, it does not seem smooth. Both candidates were actively in favor of the meeting as recently as this morning. That morning, Oh said to reporters after confirming the afternoon meeting schedule, "We have met three times and had various discussions, and through mutual visits, we will take this opportunity to reaffirm our will to unite behind whichever candidate is selected and to jointly contest the runoff." Ahn also stated, "This time, we will officially meet and show the public our determination to do our best to help the unified candidate win, whoever is selected."

Earlier, the working-level negotiation team, after concluding a meeting related to the opinion poll the previous day, said, "We hope the two candidates can meet to show the public their will for unification," and "We decided to propose a meeting."

What is the reason both sides postponed the publicly confirmed meeting schedule proposed by the working-level negotiation team?

Clues to infer this can be found in the remarks made that morning by candidate Ahn and Kwon Eun-hee, the floor leader of the People’s Party.

Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People Party and candidate for the Seoul mayoral by-election on April 7, is whispering with party officials at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 22nd.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

At a press conference appealing for support, Ahn mentioned allegations of speculation involving Oh in Naegok-dong. He said, "(If Oh becomes the unified candidate) if new facts come to light and witnesses emerge, the election might be held with the opposition candidate having withdrawn." He emphasized himself as a "flawless candidate" who "would not be hindered by various issues." In highlighting his strengths, he struck at the ‘weak spot’ of his unification partner.

Floor leader Kwon also appeared on CBS Radio’s ‘Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show’ that day and referred to Kim Jong-in, the emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, saying, "I felt that arrogance that does not acknowledge diversity and differences is a problem," and "We know there are internal demands for change regarding this. We recognize it as a task we must solve together." She treated Kim, who holds the party leadership of the People Power Party, as a problem to be solved.

These remarks provoked backlash from the People Power Party.

Oh criticized via social media, "Candidate Ahn once again brought up the Naegok-dong issue and expressed concern about me," and "Ahn’s alignment with these (allegations from the Democratic Party and candidate Park Young-sun) is neither proper before unification nor helpful in consolidating support." He requested restraint and stated, "After unification, we must achieve genuine opposition unity through true chemical bonding."

Yoon Hee-seok, spokesperson for the People Power Party, also criticized in a statement, "On the first day of the opinion poll, the behavior shown by candidate Ahn and the People’s Party was disappointing," and "Ahn brought up an issue that was proven to be completely unfounded through numerous explanations and debates, and the People’s Party floor leader poured criticism on the emergency committee chairman of the main opposition party." He appealed, "Please stop malicious negativity and vote battles that discomfort the public, and show the people a wonderful ‘one team’ for unification toward the future."

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