Lee Jun-seok: "I understand Yoon requested to join the party event boycott... and then made 'Fukushima remarks'"

Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the People Power Party, is greeting former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, a presidential candidate, during a meeting at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 2nd. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, criticized former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol for consecutively skipping party events, saying, "The boycott of the first symbolic primary schedule was the 'Fukushima remark,'" and added, "It was not a schedule that particularly helped the candidate."

On the 8th, in an interview with JoongAng Ilbo, Lee stated, "I have never seen a candidate fight with the party leader over boycotting schedules, so I am curious about the reason," and explained the conflict with former Yoon by saying, "In the end, it seems to be an intention to fight for leadership."

Earlier, on the 4th, the first joint external schedule for the People Power Party presidential candidates was volunteer work in a shantytown, followed by a meeting of all primary candidates at the National Assembly the next day. Former Yoon Seok-yeol and former Board of Audit and Inspection Chairman Choi Jae-hyung, both considered leading presidential candidates within the party, consecutively skipped these events, sparking controversy over 'bypassing the leadership' and dissatisfaction within the party toward the candidates who did not attend.

Furthermore, reports emerged that a person from former Yoon's camp proposed a joint boycott of the event to other presidential candidates within the party, making the conflict between Lee and former Yoon more explicit.

On the 6th, Lee shared an article on his Facebook stating that "a key figure from former Yoon's camp requested other candidates to boycott the volunteer work," and wrote, "If they demanded other camps to boycott party schedules, this is becoming a bigger problem."

In response, on the 7th, former Yoon's camp sent a notice to reporters stating, "We have never requested any other camp to join a boycott related to the People Power Party presidential primary schedule." However, Lee again posted on his Facebook, saying, "If this is not a media issue, there are camps that were pressured not to attend the volunteer work, but no camps that made contact," and added, "I will check which side is telling the truth. Actually, I have already checked, but I will continue to do so," engaging in a dispute over the truth of the alleged boycott pressure involving former Yoon.

Previously, on the 4th, former Yoon sparked controversy in an interview with Busan Ilbo by stating, "The Fukushima nuclear power plant did not explode in Japan. There was a large amount of damage due to the earthquake and tsunami, but the nuclear plant itself did not collapse," and "Basically, there was no radiation leakage."

Meanwhile, inside and outside the party, former Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong was identified as the person who received the boycott request from former Yoon's camp. In response, on the 8th, after a solo protest in Myeong-dong, Seoul, criticizing the government's COVID-19 quarantine measures, Won told reporters when asked about the matter, "Is that important?" but also said, "I have nothing to confirm."

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