People Power Party Also Hypocritical?... Zero Members Who Left Party Amid Real Estate Allegations

Leadership Delays with Mere Talk of 'Ethics Committee Formation'
Lee's Father's Suspected Violation of Farmland Act... Decision Becomes More Difficult

People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on the 2nd. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] Members of the People Power Party who were urged to leave the party due to real estate speculation allegations have not yet taken any substantial action. Amid ongoing disputes between the ruling and opposition parties over the 'Media Arbitration Act Amendment' and growing attention on new allegations against former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, the party has yet to take disciplinary measures such as forming an ethics committee.

According to political circles on the 5th, more than ten days have passed since the People Power Party's Supreme Council requested five lawmakers?Kang Ki-yoon, Lee Joo-hwan, Lee Cheol-gyu, Jung Chan-min, and Choi Chun-sik?to leave the party, but none have submitted their resignation letters yet. However, Yoon Hee-sook, who was included on the list but was not asked to leave by the party, has submitted her resignation as a member of the National Assembly.

Earlier, on the 24th of last month, after the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission raised allegations of real estate speculation, the People Power Party demanded the listed lawmakers to leave the party and promised to form an ethics committee.

On July 21, Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, appeared on SBS's 'Joo Young-jin's News Briefing' and stated regarding the Anti-Corruption Commission's full investigation results on the Democratic Party's real estate issues and subsequent measures, "Some say, 'What good is it if they just leave the party? Won't they rejoin someday?' or 'We should recover the profits,' but we will respond more strongly." However, when the investigation results on the People Power Party were announced, the party seemed to delay taking action.

Within the party, there is a forecast that expulsion measures will not be implemented. According to the People Power Party's bylaws, "If a person who has received a disciplinary resolution recommending withdrawal does not submit a withdrawal report within 10 days from the date of notification of the withdrawal recommendation resolution, they shall be expelled without delay without going through the committee's resolution." However, the ethics committee to review the discipline has not been formed, and the party's action remains at the level of a 'request' rather than a 'recommendation' to leave.

On the 2nd, Lee Jun-seok explained to reporters, "To be honest, we continued the fight over the Media Arbitration Act for a while, so the leadership did not follow up on the real estate issue. We will review that part again." Regarding the formation of the ethics committee, he only said, "We will proceed regardless of the deadline requested by the ruling party," without revealing specific timing or plans.

Additionally, the People Power Party is protesting, questioning the reliability of the Anti-Corruption Commission's investigation.

In this context, there are criticisms that the People Power Party will also pass over the issue without significant action, similar to the previous case with the Democratic Party. The Democratic Party expelled two lawmakers, Yoon Mi-hyang and Yang Yi-won-young, among the 12 lawmakers accused of real estate speculation by the Anti-Corruption Commission, and recommended withdrawal for the other 10. However, except for Yoon and Yang, the remaining 10 still maintain their party membership.

Meanwhile, the will of Lee Jun-seok was once again put to the test as allegations of violating the Farmland Act were raised against his father the day before. A broadcast report on that day alleged that his father violated the Farmland Act by owning farmland for 17 years without farming it himself. With the party's lawmakers and now the leader himself involved in allegations, it has become even more difficult for the party to take strict action. Lee Jun-seok stated regarding his father's allegations, "I was studying in the United States at the time and was unaware afterward. I sincerely apologize on behalf of my family."

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