"Ahn Hee-jung Turns to Fortune Teller After Election Troubles... Womanizing and Protocol Addiction"

The Rise and Fall of An Hee-jung Seen by His Executive Secretary
Publication of 'Time of Collapse'... A 7-Year Record

Moon Sang-cheol, who was the executive secretary to former Chungnam Governor Ahn Hee-jung, recently published "The Time of Decline" (Medici Media), depicting Ahn's rise and fall. The book contains records of the seven years Moon spent with Ahn and details the process of how he deteriorated.

Ahn Hee-jung, former Governor of Chungnam Province

When Ahn was first elected as Chungnam Governor, he reportedly held a unique conviction about politics. In the early days, he took bold steps such as eliminating approval documents and successfully led the provincial administration. He was also a promising politician who invited experts from various fields including politics, economy, diplomacy, culture, and society to study together.

However, he gradually became absorbed into the bureaucratic protocol cartel, tainted by realpolitik, and transformed into a politician indulging in a hero complex fueled by fandom.

Former Secretary Moon said, "Unlike the early days when he first listened attentively to opinions different from his own, he gradually began to show discomfort toward opposing views and demanded even more fortress-like protocol."

The book "Time of Decline" by Moon Sang-cheol, who was the secretary to former Chungnam Governor Ahn Hee-jung.
[Image source=Kyobo Bookstore]

The book also covers Ahn's history of relationships with women, the harms of fandom politics, foreign lobbyists approaching him during overseas visits, and how he even turned to fortune tellers when the election situation turned unfavorable.

The author warns that Ahn's downfall had been predicted long ago and that anyone holding political power could become a second or third Ahn Hee-jung.

Moon states, "Although Ahn Hee-jung has disappeared into the shadows of politics, we need to pay attention to the journey of his challenges and his downfall. Only then can we prevent the repetition of absurdities and hope for the revival of politics."

Author Hwang Doo-young, who wrote "Successful Democratization, Failed Democracy," praised the book in a recommendation, saying, "The huge shock the Ahn Hee-jung case dealt to the Democratic Party has festered without being healed or patched up. Everyone regards it as a grim past they neither understand nor want to understand. The author painstakingly revisited all the time before and after the incident to fully comprehend it."

He added, "Ultimately, this leads to the conclusion that it is not an individual's problem but the result of our twisted political structure, culture, and psychology."

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