Lee Jun-seok "Can't Understand Using Ahn's Death as an Excuse to Continue the Trial"... People's Party "Insult to the Deceased"

Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, appeals to citizens for support of presidential candidate Yoon Seok-yeol on the 19th at Techpolis M Square Plaza in Yuga-eup, Dalseong-gun, Daegu.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, said it is "nonsense" that Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate of the People’s Party, expressed his determination to continue the campaign by honoring the will of a party member who died in a campaign bus accident. In response, the People’s Party demanded an apology, calling it "disrespectful to the deceased."

On the 20th, Lee appeared on KBS Radio's "Sunday Diagnosis" and said, "The deceased passed away suddenly, so how can you confirm their will?"

Earlier, Ahn, who had suspended all official schedules due to the campaign bus fatal accident, announced on the 18th his intention to resume election activities. On that day, Ahn attended the funeral of Mr. A, the regional campaign committee chairman for Nonsan, Gyeryong, and Geumsan, at Dankook University Hospital in Cheonan, Chungnam, saying, "I will surely achieve the 'better regime change' that I dreamed of with my comrades, together with the remaining comrades," and added, "I will do my best without yielding to any storm."

Regarding this, Lee criticized, "Do the people driving the People’s Party campaign bus write a will before they get on?" and said, "The public knows well that this is logically nonsense."

He added, "I won’t criticize continuing this situation under the pretext of honoring the deceased’s will, but I don’t understand it."

The People’s Party strongly criticized Lee’s remarks and called for his resignation. Shin Nari, deputy spokesperson of the People’s Party Central Election Committee, stated in a commentary that day, "Lee deliberately distorted Ahn Cheol-soo’s statement in a live interview, where he said he would fulfill the will of our comrade who passed away in an unfortunate accident."

Deputy spokesperson Shin criticized, "Lee insulted the deceased by saying, 'He died suddenly, so what will could there be?'" and added, "Lee’s remark that someone who died tragically has no will is a serious defamation of the deceased’s honor."

She continued, "Lee’s outrageous remarks are not only an insult to those who worked hard for a better regime change for the People’s Party but also a heinous statement that adds salt to the wounds of the bereaved family," and directly attacked, "No matter how ruthless politics is, abandoning human decency is no different from being a beast."

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