“If it were a company, it would have already created a training task force”… Controversy over attendance of only half of first-time elected officials’ meeting

The standing advisory group of the Democratic Party says, “You can’t just look at the president.”

“If our company had been the same as before, we would have already created a task force and been in motion on a day like today. “It doesn’t seem like that here.”

President-elect Koh Dong-jin (Gangnam-byeong, Seoul), a former CEO of Samsung Electronics, said this after completing a meeting with first-elected candidates with Yoon Jae-ok, floor leader of the People Power Party and acting party leader, held on the 17th. At the meeting held on this day, a week after the crushing defeat in the April 10 general elections, only 14 people, half of the 28, attended, and there was no specific discussion about ways to resolve the crushing defeat. When compared to the attendance of 56 out of 58 members at the first election meeting held in June 2020, which was a crushing defeat four years ago, a ruling party official said, “We met four years ago after the opening of the National Assembly, but it was right after the worst crushing defeat, so the reason why only half attended is “It was irresponsible,” he said.

At the first-election meeting held at a restaurant in front of the National Assembly on this day, mainly elected officials from Yeongnam, the ruling party’s stronghold, and Gangnam areas in Seoul gathered. President-elect Kim Jae-seop and Kim Yong-tae, who drew attention as the 30th elected president in the metropolitan area, did not attend due to their schedules. At the meeting on this day, it is said that the main point was that “strategies are needed to win over the hearts of the 4050 generation, which has ignored the People Power Party,” and talk about strengthening the functions of the Yeouido Research Institute. It is reported that no bitter comments were made against the president and leadership. One participant said, “This was not a time to discuss details about how to resolve the crushing defeat,” and another participant also said, “Isn’t this a time to be cautious?” There are criticisms within the party that “elected candidates who will be active must first analyze the damage suffered and come up with a solution.”

At the standing advisory group meeting held two hours later, party elders, including former National Assembly Speaker Chung Eui-hwa, chairman of the standing advisory group, gave harsh evaluations of the president and the party.

At a standing advisory group meeting held in the afternoon, Chairman Chung pointed out, “The cause of this crushing defeat (in the general election) is the president’s lack of communication and the public’s judgment on the party’s incompetence.” He added, “The president must definitely change and the party must become more competent.” Chairman Chung said, “The late judgment and the president’s self-righteous appearance had a negative impact on the public sentiment,” and added, “We must no longer become a party that only looks at the president. “We must do politics with the people in mind,” he emphasized. Standing advisor Yoo Heung-soo met with reporters and said, “I think the direction of state administration is right, but the people do not like the method of executing it and the style of state administration.” He added, “We need to change the style of government administration.” “We need staff around us with a lot of political sense,” he said. Senior advisor Yoo Jun-sang also said, “(The president) has developed an image of lack of communication. “The president should hold press conferences from time to time,” he said.

Reporter Kim Jun-il jikim@donga.com
Reporter Kwon Gu-yong 9dragon@donga.com