Four-Party Debate on 17th Canceled, Yoon's Side "Schedule Adjustment Impossible," Minju "Just Admit You Don't Want to Debate"

Four-Party TV Debate Canceled on 17th
Jo Seung-rae: "Honestly Admit You Don't Want to Debate"

Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party, Sim Sang-jung of the Justice Party, Ahn Cheol-soo of the People’s Party, and Yoon Seok-youl of the People Power Party, presidential candidates (from left), are taking a commemorative photo before the start of the 2022 presidential candidate invitation debate hosted by the Korea Journalists Association and jointly organized by six broadcasting companies at the Maeil Business Newspaper Media Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 11th. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Jung-wan] The four-party TV debate with presidential candidates invited by the Gwanhun Club, scheduled for the 17th, was canceled due to circumstances on the side of Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party. Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, reacted by saying, "Candidate Yoon Seok-yeol has once again canceled the debate out of fear."

On the 14th, Cho Seung-rae, chief spokesperson of the Democratic Party's election committee, criticized in a statement, "Candidate Yoon once again canceled the TV debate proposed and promoted by the Gwanhun Club for the 17th, using scheduling as an excuse. We suspected it, and it turned out to be true."

Cho added, "The Gwanhun debate is well known as a deep and neutral debate with a long history. It has been an important stage to verify the qualifications of major politicians and presidential candidates throughout history," and asked, "Candidate Yoon, are you that afraid of the Gwanhun debate? Do you have so little to show the public?"

He continued, "At first, he said it had to be on the date he designated, but now he can't even use the date as an excuse. Honestly say you just don't want to debate. The more obvious excuses you make, the more your true colors show," he pointed out.

On the same day, Yoon Ho-jung, floor leader of the Democratic Party, wrote on his Facebook, "There were 47 debates in the 2007 presidential election, 15 in 2012, and 17 in 2017. Because of candidate Yoon, the opportunity to scrutinize presidential candidates is expected to hit a historic low."

Earlier, the Gwanhun Club announced on the 14th that they had received a message from the People Power Party side asking for understanding due to unavoidable absence.

Sung Il-jong, head of the People Power Party's TV debate negotiation team, stated that it was difficult to attend the debate because candidate Yoon's schedule was too busy to adjust.

Previously, candidates Lee, Yoon, Ahn Cheol-soo of the People’s Party, and Shim Sang-jung of the Justice Party attended out-of-court debates on the 3rd and 11th, and the third debate was being planned for the 17th.

Separately, TV debates hosted by the National Election Commission under the Public Official Election Act are scheduled to be held three times on the 21st (economy), 25th (politics), and March 2nd (society).

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