Bae Hyun-jin Says "The Public Sentiment Cannot Be Disciplined"...Appears Before Ethics Committee, Gives One-Hour Explanation

[Financial News] Bae Hyun-jin, who heads the Seoul Metropolitan Chapter of the People Power Party, appeared before the party’s Central Ethics Committee on the 11th and stated, "As the head of the Seoul Metropolitan Chapter of the People Power Party, I said what needed to be said. I expect the Ethics Committee to make a reasonable judgment."
Bae was brought before the Ethics Committee for leading a statement opposing the expulsion of former party leader Han Dong-hoon. She appeared at the party headquarters in Yeongdeungpo District, Seoul, on the morning of the same day and went through about an hour of explanation procedures before the committee.
Afterward, Bae told reporters, "Lee Sang-gyu, the local party chapter head who filed the complaint, captured all of my past Facebook posts and raised objections," adding, "He claimed that I was engaging in factional politics, but that is absolutely not the case."
She continued, "I reiterated my unchanged views on the December 3 martial law declaration and on First Lady Kim Kun-hee. I also conveyed that this disciplinary case does not end with the punishment of a single person, but effectively puts a halt to all the committee members preparing for the Seoul elections."
Bae went on, "(The Ethics Committee) checked whether I had taken the lead or exerted pressure in the process of distributing the statements issued by the Seoul Metropolitan Chapter heads and by city and district council members," and added, "I believe I have sufficiently explained myself."
She added, "There was absolutely no coercion. For about six months, I have been running the Seoul Metropolitan Chapter together with the local party chapter heads through a democratic process," and said, "I trust that the members of the Ethics Committee will understand this well."
Even before attending the Ethics Committee meeting, Bae had stressed, "Many people are worried about my possible departure from the party or expulsion. The right to nominate candidates does not belong exclusively to the central party leadership," and added, "You may put a metropolitan chapter head you find disagreeable or uncomfortable on a political guillotine and discipline them, but you cannot discipline the public sentiment."
She also commented on the decision made the previous night by the Ethics Committee of the Seoul Metropolitan Chapter to recommend that conservative YouTuber Ko Sung-kuk leave the party, after he argued that a photo of former President Chun Doo-hwan should be displayed at the party headquarters. She said, "It was a courageous move to resolve a difficult issue that the central party leadership found hard to handle," and explained, "If Ko has filed an objection, the matter will now be passed on to the Central Ethics Committee."
Earlier, Lee Sang-gyu, the local party chapter head for the Seongbuk-eul district in Seoul and a member of the pro-leadership faction, had filed a complaint with the party’s Central Ethics Committee against Bae, who is aligned with the pro–Han Dong-hoon camp.
The complaint alleged that, while serving as head of the Seoul Metropolitan Chapter, Bae released to the outside world a statement by 21 local party chapter heads opposing the expulsion of former leader Han, as if it represented the official position of the entire Seoul Metropolitan Chapter. The party’s Ethics Committee began deliberations on possible disciplinary action against Bae on the 6th.
y27k@fnnews.com Seo Yoon-kyung Reporter