DP misinterprets the election results again

The domineering ways of the Democratic Party (DP) after its landslide victory in the April 10 parliamentary elections are boundless.

The domineering ways of the Democratic Party (DP) after its landslide victory in the April 10 parliamentary elections are boundless. Following its unilateral submission on Tuesday of a controversial bill aimed at dramatically expanding the scope of former democracy fighters, the opposition floats the idea of electing all chairpersons of standing committees of the National Assembly by vote. The head of the majority party’s strategy and planning committee even threatened to remove the word “cooperation” from its relations with the governing People Power Party (PPP). The DP has persistently demanded “co-governance” from President Yoon Suk Yeol and the PPP, but after the recent election triumph, it changed its mind.

The act on rewarding former democracy fighters aims to accept fanatical figures involved in their violent battles against the past military government — and even those who fought against the government’s ban on the combative teachers’ union — as recipients of government rewards. If included in the recipient group, they, their parents and children can receive hefty benefits from the government. Since the Democracy Fighters Compensation Act was passed in 2000, 116.9 billion won ($85.1 million) has been offered to compensate their bravery.

Normally, a deliberation committee determines the qualifications for the national merit. But the list of the names of awardees and their merit cannot be disclosed in order to protect their privacy. In other words, the screening process will be conducted behind closed doors. There are no clear standards for the reward, either. The DP wants to pass the self-serving act after its election victory.

That’s not all. In a strange move, DP leader Lee Jae-myung has suddenly kept mum after the prosecutor general squarely refuted Lee’s former aide’s allegation that he was cajoled by prosecutors over drinks to accept his responsibility for the mysterious remittance of $8 million to North Korea to help Lee Jae-myung, then-Gyeonggi governor, to visit Pyongyang apparently in return for favors.

The DP must not distort the meaning of the election victory. Though the party won 175 seats — 67 seats more than the PPP — their gap in voter turnouts is just 5.4 percent. Voters certainly voted for the opposition, but it doesn’t mean it can do whatever it wants.

If the DP really wants to win the 2027 presidential election, it must demonstrate rationality and cooperation toward the PPP. Only then can the opposition be recognized as a party that can emerge as a governing party. If the DP is still bent on doling out 250,000 won in cash to each citizen as if it were a trophy, the party cannot win the hearts of the people.