Cho Kuk Says, "Pyeongtaek B Is Already Achieving a Zero People Power Party Result... Voters Must Choose Between Cho Kuk and Kim Yong-nam"

\r[The Financial News] Cho Kuk, the RKP candidate for the Pyeongtaek B by-election in Gyeonggi Province, said on the 12th that "a 'zero People Power Party' outcome is already naturally being realized in Pyeongtaek B," arguing for a two-way race with Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) candidate Kim Yong-nam.
At a meeting that day with Moon Jong-taek, a bereaved family member of the MV Sewol victims, at his campaign office in Anjung-eup, Pyeongtaek, Cho said, "In about 20 days, the combined support for People Power Party candidate Yu Eui-dong and independent candidate Hwang Kyo-ahn will have fallen, and the race will fully settle into a choice between Cho Kuk and Kim Yong-nam."
Cho also pointed out, "Beyond the MV Sewol, Itaewon and Baek Nam-gi cases, there were many strong remarks Kim made when he was with the People Power Party. I think he needs to clarify his position on those issues."
Earlier, Kim apologized on the 12th for his past remark calling the 4·16 Sewol Ferry Disaster Special Investigation Commission a "waste of tax money." He said, "Regardless of my intention, I acknowledge that the remark left an indelible wound in the hearts of the bereaved families." He also described his past role as a spokesperson for Yoon Suk Yeol's presidential candidate campaign during the 21st presidential election as a "mistake."
In response, Cho said, "I think he spent a long time moving through the People Power Party, the Reform Party and then joining the Democratic Party to contribute to a change in government." He added, "I was not with the Democratic Party, but in a broader sense I have never deviated from the current that has continued since the Moon Jae-in administration and even earlier, from the Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun administrations. I have never abandoned the vision and values of the democratic progressive camp. In that respect, I am better."
Cho also argued that he should be the one to complete the follow-up legislation on prosecution reform that the Democratic Party plans to pursue after the local elections. The party leadership is expected to begin reviewing amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act of the Republic of Korea after the local elections to decide whether to abolish prosecutors' supplementary investigation authority.
Cho said he supports the principle of abolishing prosecutors' supplementary investigation authority, while Kim wants to keep it. He added, "This is an issue not only for voters in Pyeongtaek B, but for voters nationwide to judge. After the election, people must choose whether to send out Cho Kuk or Kim Yong-nam for prosecution reform."
jiwon.song@fnnews.com Song Ji-won Reporter