[Summary] "Candidate to Steal Seoul" vs "Successor of Sexual Violence" Final Vote Approaches... Ruling and Opposition Parties Launch Full-Scale Offensive

與 "'Humility Before Memory' Is a Fallacy That Encourages Political Hatred"
Opposition: "Moon Administration's Achievements Deepened Public Conflict"

Kim Jong-in, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, is appealing for support from citizens at a campaign rally for Seoul mayoral candidate Oh Se-hoon held in front of Yeonsinnae Station, Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 31st of last month. Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers Group

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] With the April 7 by-elections just two days away, the Democratic Party of Korea and the People Power Party are intensifying their final offensives by raising the level of criticism against their opponents. The Democratic Party condemned People Power Party’s Seoul mayoral candidate Oh Se-hoon as a "candidate who will steal Seoul’s future," while the People Power Party labeled Democratic Party’s Busan mayoral candidate Kim Young-choon as a "successor of sexual violence."

Shin Young-dae, spokesperson for the Democratic Party’s Central Election Committee, issued a statement on the 4th, saying, "Candidate Oh is a failed former mayor who, during his 10-year tenure, received 3.6 billion KRW and separate residential land compensation for the Naegok-dong development, and abandoned his mayoral position while kneeling and shedding tears, claiming he could not feed free meals to children." He criticized, "Regarding the self-compensation suspicion, he said 'I didn’t know' and 'If I profited, I will resign,' but when faced with overwhelming evidence and testimonies, he responded with the absurd excuse that 'one must be humble before memory,' which incites political disgust."

Shin added, "Seoul must not return to the controversy over free school meals from 10 years ago," and raised his voice, saying, "Candidate Oh, who will steal Seoul’s future to cover up his lies, must be judged."

On the same day, the People Power Party continued its offensive by referring to former Busan Mayor Oh Keo-don’s sexual harassment case, disparaging candidate Kim as a "successor of sexual violence."

Kim Jong-in, emergency committee chairman, said at a joint campaign rally for the Busan mayoral by-election, "We should not elect a successor to Mayor Oh Keo-don, who stepped down due to a sexual violence incident," emphasizing, "Why is this by-election being held? It is because of the sexual violence incident involving former Mayor Oh Keo-don."

He continued, "There is no way to know what the Moon Jae-in administration has achieved in the past four years," and claimed, "Polarization has widened significantly over the past four years, and public conflicts have deepened?that is the record of the Moon Jae-in administration."

He then said, "If Park Hyung-joon becomes mayor in Busan and Oh Se-hoon becomes mayor in Seoul, this government will awaken," "and we must definitely judge the Moon Jae-in administration in this election."

Park Young-sun, the Democratic Party of Korea candidate for Seoul mayor, is appealing for support at Woori Market in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, on the 1st./Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers Group

Upon hearing Kim’s "successor of sexual violence" remark, the Democratic Party immediately rebuked it as "an excessive personal attack and abusive language."

Choi In-ho, chief spokesperson, said in a written briefing on the same day, "We take seriously that the April 7 by-election started due to the mistakes of our party members," but criticized, "That does not justify calling our candidate a 'successor of sexual violence,' which is unacceptable verbal violence."

Choi also mentioned allegations against People Power Party’s Busan mayoral candidate Park Hyung-joon, including illegal surveillance by the National Intelligence Service and real estate speculation, urging, "Before Chairman Kim uses low-level abusive language to tarnish the opposing candidate, he should first clarify the allegations against candidate Park Hyung-joon." He added, "There can be no future for those who are not upright. We urge your party to openly clarify the suspicions surrounding your candidates before the citizens of Busan and the public."

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