Jo Kyung-tae, First Ruling Party Lawmaker to Publicly Support Yoon's Impeachment... "It Should Be Shortened Even by a Day"

Six-Term Lawmaker Jo Kyung-tae
"Choose Between Standing with the People or Becoming a Collaborator"

Jo Kyung-tae, the longest-serving member of the People Power Party (six terms) and a leading figure of the pro-Roh faction, representing Busan Saha-eul, publicly expressed support for the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol on the 6th, becoming the first ruling party lawmaker to do so.

On the same day, Jo told reporters at the National Assembly, "The very act of declaring martial law was unconstitutional and illegal," adding, "The president's suspension from office should happen as soon as possible."

Earlier, Han Dong-hoon, the party leader, also confirmed at the Supreme Council meeting that President Yoon had attempted to use the Counterintelligence Command to arrest politicians, and pointed out that no personnel actions were taken against military officials, suggesting the possibility of recurrence and emphasizing the need to suspend the president's execution of duties.

When reporters asked Jo if he believed the plenary session should be convened even today to vote on the impeachment, he replied, "Yes," stressing, "It is better to shorten the time as much as possible, even by a day."

Yonhap News

Regarding how many ruling party lawmakers share his stance on supporting President Yoon's impeachment, Jo said, "The choice between standing with the people through the president's suspension or becoming collaborators of the forces that declared martial law is a matter for politicians to decide," appealing, "I sincerely hope that all People Power Party politicians become politicians who stand with the people."

When asked if the entry of martial law troops into the National Election Commission was a major factor, he responded, "No. That is not a significant factor. I believe the very act of declaring martial law itself, which was unconstitutional and illegal, is the greater cause," and emphasized the necessity of a special investigation into the martial law incident, saying, "Of course."

When asked if he viewed the recent martial law declaration as effectively a personal coup, Jo said, "Many foreign media outlets are judging it that way, aren't they?" and added, "Also, I believe the former Minister of National Defense should be immediately arrested."

Regarding whether this issue was discussed with Floor Leader Choo Kyung-ho, Jo criticized, "Floor Leader Choo did not attend the vote to lift martial law last time. I consider that a very serious problem," and said, "Many citizens will not agree that this was an appropriate conduct for a floor leader."

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