Yoon's 'Mentality' Remark Draws Heavy Criticism from Hong Joon-pyo and Yoo Seung-min: "Have You Lost All Sense?" "Arrogant and Presumptuous"

Hong Jun-pyo "Person who has only been here for three months..."
Yoo Seung-min "Stop acting like a spy" fierce attack

Former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min (left) and lawmaker Hong Joon-pyo, preliminary candidates for the People Power Party presidential primary./Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Hong Joon-pyo, a presidential primary candidate of the People Power Party, and former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min launched fierce attacks against former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, who sparked controversy with his "mental attitude" remarks, saying, "He is unbearably arrogant" and "Does he think the party is a joke?"

Earlier, on the 13th, at the appointment ceremony of the People Power Party's Jeju regional election committee, former Prosecutor General Yoon sharply criticized Hong and Yoo, who had been focusing their attacks on him, saying, "Whether we bring the regime to power or not is a secondary issue, but if we don't change this kind of mental attitude first, it is right that our party disappears."

Yoon said, "If those people had done their job properly, would the regime have changed hands and would we have been crushed like this in the local elections and general elections?" He raised his voice, saying, "With what face do they come out again to run for president and attack candidates from the same party with the Democratic Party's frame? The party is truly pathetic. To bring about regime change, we must change the party first."

Hong and Yoo were infuriated. On the 14th, Hong criticized Yoon in a post on his Facebook, saying, "A person who has only been in the party for three months says that if the mental attitude doesn't change, the party should be disbanded? How arrogant and presumptuous."

He added, "I am someone who has loved and protected this party for 26 years," and said, "I have overlooked all sorts of controversies so far, but this is hard to overlook. Just as a rookie prosecutor who has only been on the job for four months would look ridiculous if he tried to become Prosecutor General, the appearance of someone insisting on becoming president after only four months in politics seems immature and absurd." He also said, "I have treated him cautiously as a junior prosecutor until now, but I will conduct a harsh verification at the next debate."

Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, a presidential primary candidate of the People Power Party, is holding a press conference on the afternoon of the 13th at the People Power Party Jeju Provincial Office on Yeonsam-ro, Jeju City.
Photo by Yonhap News

Former lawmaker Yoo also directly attacked Yoon on the same day via Facebook, saying, "What are you afraid of that you stab us in the back?" Yoo said, "Is this a habit from being a henchman of the Moon Jae-in administration?" He added, "If you are confident, look people in the eye and speak proudly in TV debates. How can someone who stammers even when writing the character '王' (king) on their palm beat Lee Jae-myung? If you face him, you will be thoroughly defeated."

He continued, "Thanks to playing the role of a loyal dog to the Moon Jae-in administration, you rose to sudden fame, but do you think you can get away with anything now?" Yoo sarcastically said, "Stop acting as a spy in the party that has arrested countless people for deep-rooted evils. Just because you have some support, do you think politics is that trivial and the party is beneath your feet? You might as well say, 'Please endorse me.' Isn't that what you wanted from the start, to be endorsed on a flower path?"

Meanwhile, former Prosecutor General Yoon explained his "mental attitude" remarks, saying, "I made those comments to urge the party to reform further," and clarified, "I am not saying to close the party door, but we really need to get our act together and strengthen our fighting spirit to prevent the Democratic Party, which is sick with dictatorship within the party, from doing any more outrageous acts against the people."

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