People Power Party-National Party, Merger Announcement Possibly Tomorrow... Finalizing Declaration Statement

On-duty Staff Employment Succession Virtually Agreed
Ahn "Merger Won't Take Long"

Ahn Cheol-soo, Chairman of the Presidential Transition Committee, answering reporters' questions as he leaves the Presidential Transition Committee in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 17th. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The People Power Party and the People’s Party are expected to officially announce their merger as early as the 18th. The drafting of the merger declaration is also in its final stages of coordination.

A key official from the People Power Party stated on the 17th, "The drafting of the merger declaration with the People’s Party has been virtually completed," adding, "It seems possible to announce the merger tomorrow (the 18th)."

On the same day, Ahn Cheol-soo, Chairman of the Presidential Transition Committee, told reporters that when asked about the possibility of announcing the merger tomorrow, "Various detailed adjustments are underway," noting that there remain minor procedural adjustments regarding the employment succession of seven People’s Party officials. Chairman Ahn said, "It probably won’t take that long," but refrained from specifying the exact timing of the merger.

This appears to reflect an intention to keep the possibility of detailed coordination open regarding the issue of party officials, which is considered the last major obstacle to the merger.

Chairman Ahn emphasized, "There are party officials who have trusted me and followed me through very difficult circumstances. This is actually the most important part," adding, "It is very important to me that they receive fair treatment. There are minor (adjustments) left. I believe it will be resolved well."

When asked about "issues to be resolved other than the succession of party officials," Chairman Ahn replied, "There are no major problems."

Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, delivering a congratulatory speech at the '10th Seoul Economic Forum' held at the Fairmont Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 14th. (Photo by Yonhap News)

The employment succession of seven party officials consists of five general party staff and two party support staff, and it is said that an agreement has virtually been reached, according to People Power Party officials. Typically, general party staff in the People Power Party are hired through regular public recruitment and start their work at the 'Manager' level. This naturally leads to strong opposition from existing general party staff.

The salary and treatment of regular party officials in the People Power Party are known to be higher than those in the People’s Party. Besides rank, salary determination remains a final adjustment issue. The People Power Party’s office labor union supports the employment succession of People’s Party officials but opposes setting their salaries at the same level.

In a statement issued that day, the union said, "The People’s Party has not even submitted copies of bank statements clearly proving their salary levels," adding, "According to the agreement proposed by the People’s Party, it is estimated that their monthly salary would increase by 1 to 1.5 million KRW compared to their current (People’s Party) salary levels." The union emphasized, "If this is true, it would be an unfair act that disheartens existing People Power Party workers who have to undergo various evaluations for a year just to raise their starting salary by one step."

The People Power Party union stated, "We welcome the full guarantee of the current salary levels of People’s Party workers," and argued, "If they want to advance to general party staff positions, they should be fairly evaluated through exams like People Power Party workers after employment succession."

The share of nomination rights for the June 1 local elections is reported not to be included as a condition of the merger.

The People’s Party National Chairpersons’ Council held a press conference in front of the Transition Committee office in Tongui-dong on the same day, demanding "strategic nominations for all People’s Party candidates running in the local elections," and warned that if this demand is not met, they will proceed with injunction applications to prohibit the merger. In response, Chairman Ahn said, "I haven’t seen (the press conference)," adding, "Originally, there can be different interests regarding local elections. We will coordinate well."

The official merger announcement is expected to be made jointly by Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, and Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party. The party name will be maintained as 'People Power Party.' On the 3rd of last month, six days before the presidential election, President-elect Yoon Seok-youl and Chairman Ahn unexpectedly announced their candidate unification and agreed on forming a joint government and merging the two parties after the presidential election.

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