People Power Party White Paper TF Leader Jo Jeonghun: "I Will Include Words That May Be Uncomfortable"

Honam Losers: "If Honam Is Abandoned, People Power Party Will Collapse"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The People Power Party's general election white paper task force (TF) held its first meeting, reaffirming its commitment to reflection and development following the election defeat.

Jo Jeong-hoon, head of the general election white paper TF, said at the full meeting held at the party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, "The process of creating the white paper is about making reform proposals and is no different from the test before us." He added, "We will include all uncomfortable words, words that may hurt someone, if they are the real issues." He continued, "Because I raised my hand to do this work for the future of conservatism and the future of the Republic of Korea," emphasizing, "The collapse of a traditional conservative party is like breaking one of the two wings of Korea. We will only think about a People Power Party that meets the people's expectations and the reconstruction of conservatism."

Yoon Jae-ok, acting party leader of the People Power Party, said, "In the April 10 general election, the People Power Party received a painful reprimand from the people," adding, "We failed to gain the trust of the people in Seoul, the metropolitan area, and the Chungcheong region, and we inevitably face a minority government situation in the 22nd National Assembly." He continued, "The general election white paper TF starting today is the first step in fulfilling our promise to the people," and "We must thoroughly analyze and identify the causes of losing public trust, diagnose the problems without omission, and consider how to fix and move forward."

Bae Jun-young, acting secretary-general of the party, said, "Defeatism is our worst enemy, and no player collapses just because they lost one game. We must rise again," adding, "Although some criticize the party as appearing powerless, we are working with an urgent mindset to resolve the party's crisis as soon as possible." He emphasized, "We must objectively and calmly analyze why public sentiment turned cold and how we failed to meet the people's demands," and "We must thoroughly change our constitution and innovate until told to stop."

Voices were also raised that Honam should not be abandoned. Kim Jeong-myeong, a member of the general election white paper TF who ran and lost in Gwangju Buk-gu in this election, said, "Honam may be a barren land, but it must never be abandoned. The moment it is abandoned, the People Power Party will perish," adding, "I joined the white paper committee to analyze the over 40 years of defeat in Honam and to propose a winning formula."

Attending the meeting were TF head Jo, party leadership, Vice Chairman Jin Young-jae, professor of political science and diplomacy at Yonsei University, and former candidates including Lee Sang-gyu (Seoul Seongbuk-eul), Jeong Seung-yeon (Incheon Yeonsu-gap), Kim Jong-hyeok (Gyeonggi Goyang-byeong), Kim Hyo-eun (Gyeonggi Osan), Ho Jun-seok (Seoul Guro-gap), Kim Jeong-myeong (Gwangju Buk-gu-gap), Park Jin-ho (Gyeonggi Gimpo-gap), Kim Jin-mo (Chungbuk Cheongju-seowon), as well as Lee Yoon-jeong, proportional representative candidate of the People’s Future Party, data analysis expert Jeon In-young, and Jung Jin-woo, director of CaseStat Research.

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