Jung Sung-ho "Lee Jae-myung, Becoming Party Leader Doesn't Make Him Bulletproof... I Am Confident of His Innocence"

Direct Hit on '97 Group', "Politics Under the Shadow of the 86 Group"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] Jeong Seong-ho, a 'pro-Myeong' member of the Democratic Party of Korea, refuted the legal allegations and disputes surrounding lawmaker Lee Jae-myung, stating, "I am confident of his innocence." He also countered criticism from some quarters labeling Lee's candidacy as a 'shield candidacy,' asking, "Would becoming party leader make him invincible?"

In an interview with CBS's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' Jeong responded to concerns that Lee's candidacy would put the entire party at risk by saying, "Why would it endanger the whole party?"

He said, "In fact, even looking at the current investigation status, there is no evidence that Lee directly received money, right?" He added, "The Daejang-dong and Baekhyeon-dong cases are about whether breach of trust applies. I could talk extensively about breach of trust, but it’s like a nose ring if hung on the nose, or an earring if hung on the ear," implying the charges are subjective.

He continued, "Anyway, until the prosecution loses its right to indict and investigate, they are fully attacking Lee. Defining that as Lee’s judicial risk and attacking him to prevent him from running in the party convention is not right as a party member," criticizing the attacks.

He also said, "Do you think the Yoon Seok-yeol government or the prosecution would stop investigation procedures or decide not to indict? I don’t think so," adding, "In my long political career, whether before or after I started politics, I have never seen such political retaliation or political suppression investigations within the same party being criticized internally like this."

Regarding the candidacy of the '97 Group,' he pointed out, "They entered politics under the shadow of the '86 Group,' recommended by them, right? I want to ask whether, after entering politics, they have presented political values and visions different from the previous generation," he criticized.

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