Opposition leadership says controversy over Jang Dong-hyuk's future has been settled, dismisses Han Dong-hoon's readmission

[Financial News] The People Power Party leadership said on the 20th that although pressure for Jang Dong-hyuk to step down intensified after the June 3 local elections defeat, the party has recently been rallying around him. It also dismissed calls to readmit independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon, saying it is "not in a position to talk about the readmission of any particular person" and would focus on attacks against the government.
Park Sung-hoon, the party's chief spokesperson, told reporters after a Supreme Council meeting at the National Assembly that "the controversy over the party leader's future has eased to some extent, and we are seeing more unity than division among supporters." He said that this sense of unity has helped lift the party's approval rating.
Realmeter released a party approval survey on the day, commissioned by Energy Economy Newspaper and conducted on the 15th and 16th among 1,005 adults nationwide aged 18 and older. The Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) scored 43.1 percent, while the People Power Party recorded 40.0 percent. The People Power Party rose 1.9 percentage points from the previous survey, narrowing the gap slightly. The survey was conducted through wireless automated response interviews. The margin of error was plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level, and the response rate was 4.1 percent. For more details, see the website of the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission.
In response, Park said the People Power Party's approval rating has recently turned upward again. He added that the leadership's decision to take the lead on issues directly tied to people's livelihoods, including the three laws to protect against economic harm, played a decisive role in driving the trend.
Regarding the planned disciplinary review by the party's Central Ethics Committee this week for lawmakers from the pro-Han Dong-hoon camp who supported one lawmaker, as well as for Cho Kyoung-tae, he said the process is being carried out "in the name of responsibility and discipline, the party's most important principles." On claims that such moves could hurt the party's approval rating, he said the party must fulfill its role in order to operate normally and remain sustainable. He added that if this were truly a major cause of falling approval ratings, it would lead to the conclusion that no party should ever discipline any misconduct.
When critics said Jang's decision not to attend an official event on Constitution Day, the 17th, and instead appear at Olympic Park in Seoul was a move to hold onto party power, Park Jun-tae, the party leader's chief of staff, pushed back, calling it "an assessment that is completely unacceptable."
Park said, "At Olympic Park, there are citizens and young people who have set aside their livelihoods to be there. Even in the rain, even when sweat pours down like rain, they are staying on site with the determination to defend voting rights." He added, "Politicians should feel sorry and grateful to them, and should have at least some sense of responsibility."
He continued, "More than 40 lawmakers from the party are confirmed to have visited the site. Citizens there also seem to be judging who came and who turned away from the scene." He said, "If they do not join this beautiful civic movement, they will one day be remembered and recorded as politicians who ignored the aspirations of citizens who took to the streets to protect voting rights, and they will be shunned by the public."
He also said, "Regardless of faction or political line, I ask all lawmakers of our party to join together."
Meanwhile, Jang plans to wrap up his visits to the so-called rally to defend voting rights sites after this week's schedule in Daegu. He will then shift to a parliamentary struggle to push for acceptance of the special counsel bill regarding the National Election Commission.
[email protected] Lee Hae-ram Reporter