President-elect Yoon Repeatedly Mentions "Constitutional Spirit"... People Power Party Reorganizes as a Unified Front

Meeting of Assembly Members' Director of Operations: "'Geomsuwanbak' is an outrage"
Interpretation as support for renegotiation of mediation proposal

Yoon's side pressures mentioning "President Moon's veto"
Jang Je-won: "I believe the veto will be exercised"

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is entering the office of the Presidential Transition Committee in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 26th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol has been indirectly expressing opposition to the 'complete removal of prosecution investigation rights (Geomsu Wanbak)' mediation plan by repeatedly referring to the "spirit of the Constitution." On the 22nd, the People Power Party, which overturned the mediation agreement and officially initiated renegotiations, held a party meeting on this day and once again resolved to respond as a 'one team,' stating that "the mediation plan cannot be processed by agreement." As President-elect Yoon's side shifted to a hardline stance to the extent of urging President Moon Jae-in to exercise his veto power against the 'Geomsu Wanbak mediation plan,' there is an interpretation that the People Power Party also began to move in a coordinated manner accordingly.

On the 26th, President-elect Yoon visited the traditional market in Gyeyang Mountain, Incheon, and stated, "The president's first duty is to properly observe the Constitution and realize the values of the Constitution well." He added, "If the president observes the Constitution and realizes its values well, we will have future prosperity and development," and said, "I will not forget what I felt and learned during the election campaign and will do my best to realize it while performing the presidential duties."

The day before, spokesperson Bae Hyunjin mentioned 'constitutional values,' saying, "(President-elect Yoon) will fulfill his responsibilities and duties to protect the good citizens and uphold constitutional values after taking office," followed by President-elect Yoon himself referring to 'constitutional values.' President-elect Yoon's side judges that the Geomsu Wanbak bill violates the spirit of the Constitution. It is also reported that President-elect Yoon's view that Geomsu Wanbak means 'corruption runs rampant' (Bupae Wanpan) remains unchanged.

President-elect Yoon's side has stepped up pressure by even mentioning President Moon Jae-in's 'exercise of veto power.' They argue that even if the Democratic Party forcibly passes the 'Geomsu Wanbak mediation plan' in the National Assembly, President Moon should exercise his veto power. On this day, Jang Je-won, chief of staff to the president-elect, told reporters, "I believe President Moon will carefully judge what the people want and exercise his veto power."

As President-elect Yoon embarks on renegotiations over Geomsu Wanbak, he appears to be supporting People Power Party floor leader Kwon Seong-dong, who suffered some leadership damage. Lee Yong, a lawmaker and chief of staff to President-elect Yoon, attended the party meeting held at the National Assembly in the afternoon and reportedly said, "Geomsu Wanbak is the Democratic Party's outrage," and urged, "Let's support Floor Leader Kwon." Since Lee has closely assisted President-elect Yoon from the presidential election process until recently, his remarks are seen as reflecting President-elect Yoon's intentions.

There is an interpretation that President-elect Yoon is trying to help Floor Leader Kwon manage the unsettled atmosphere within the party caused by the mediation agreement and reversal process and strengthen negotiation power in the National Assembly. As the aftershocks of the Geomsu Wanbak mediation plan spread, attention has also focused on how much communication took place between President-elect Yoon and Floor Leader Kwon in advance.

Some even speculated that Floor Leader Kwon signed the mediation plan without communicating with President-elect Yoon and later reversed it after confirming 'Yoon's mind' (Yunsim), but President-elect Yoon's side confirmed that there was some communication during the mediation agreement process. Spokesperson Bae said in a briefing, "President-elect Yoon briefly spoke on the phone with Floor Leader Kwon during his schedule in Busan," and added, "Naturally, he was confirming and listening to the situation."

However, it is also said that there probably was no detailed coordination on each item of the mediation plan. A source from President-elect Yoon's side said, "On the 22nd, President-elect Yoon was in Busan for his schedule, so communication was probably not very smooth."

There is also an analysis that President-elect Yoon somewhat accepted the mediation plan as an unavoidable 'painful measure' in the minority government situation immediately after the ruling-opposition agreement on the 22nd, but as public opinion rapidly changed over the weekend, his perception of the situation became serious, leading to his effective opposition to the mediation plan.

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