Cheon Ha-ram: "Lee Jun-seok Joining New Party Is Not Appropriate to Comment on at This Time"

Cheon Ha-ram, the People Power Party (PPP) Suncheon Gap district committee chairman who supported former PPP leader Lee Jun-seok during the party convention last March, expressed caution about joining Lee's new party, saying, "It is not appropriate to talk about it in the current situation."

On the 14th, during SBS's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show,' when asked by the host whether he would join the 'Lee Jun-seok new party,' Chairman Cheon said, "Since this is still a hypothetical situation, we cannot provide an answer at this time."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 12th, former leader Lee shared his new party founding action plan with his close aide 'Cheon Ayongin.' 'Cheon Ayongin' refers to the four pro-Lee Jun-seok candidates who ran in the PPP March 8 party convention: Chairman Cheon, Representative Heo Eun-ah, former Youth Supreme Council member Kim Yong-tae, and Gyeonggi Province Assembly member Lee Gi-in.

However, Chairman Cheon said, "The founding of the new party has not been officially announced yet, so I think it is inappropriate to comment at this stage," adding, "Founding a new party means leaving the current party, and such a decision requires very careful consideration."

He continued, "Some interpret this as 'Cheon Ha-ram has completely drawn a line with Lee Jun-seok,' but that is not the case," and said, "I cannot yet say whether I will participate in the new party, but I fully agree with the awareness that fundamental change in the party and the president is necessary; otherwise, our conservative camp could face mutual destruction. I intend to support former leader Lee's efforts to bring about change in the party and the president as much as possible."

When asked by the host whether the 'founding of the new party' is not the ultimate goal but rather a means to bring about change in the party and the president, Chairman Cheon said, "I believe one reason former leader Lee set the deadline of December 27 and is not immediately leaving the party to found a new one is precisely because of that. He is strongly urging fundamental change in the party and the president by December 27, so in that sense, it definitely has a means-oriented character."

However, he added, "Once December 27 arrives and the founding of the new party is officially declared, it will no longer be a means to an end," and "I believe there is a clear intention to completely shake up the political landscape of the Republic of Korea through the party itself."

In response to the host's follow-up question, "'Change within the People Power Party is the best option, and the new party is the second-best option,' is that correct?" Chairman Cheon said, "I do not want to express it exactly like that," but added, "Of course, the party is a very important factor."

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