Ahn Cheol-soo, “If Lee Jin-bok Didn’t Say Anything, He Wouldn’t Have Any Problems”

People Power Party legislator Ahn Cheol-soo listens to the moderator at a general meeting of the party’s lawmakers at the National Assembly on April 7. Bak Min-gyu, Senior Reporter

People Power Party (PPP) legislator Ahn Cheol-soo mentioned Senior Secretary to the President for Political Affairs Lee Jin-bok on May 4 and said, “He shouldn’t be telling other people what to do. If he didn’t do anything, he wouldn’t have any problems. It’s quite concerning.”

Ahn made the remark when he appeared on the KBS radio show, Choi Gyeong-yeong’s Top Current Affairs Thursday. When Ahn ran for party leader in the last party convention, Lee attacked Ahn for suggesting a “Yoon-Ahn union (a union between Yoon Suk-yeol and Ahn Cheol-soo)” and said, “If he didn’t say anything, he wouldn’t have any problems.” And now, after a voice recording of Tae Yong-ho (Thae Yong-ho), a member of the PPP Supreme Council, was released stirring controversy over Lee Jin-bok’s intervention in party candidate nominations, Ahn returned Lee’s remark.

Ahn explained why he did not respond strongly to the senior secretary’s attacks at the time of the party convention and said, “Since our party members were hurt by the affairs of the previous party leader (Lee Jun-seok), I knew that they were truly worried about a new party leader stirring conflict with Yongsan. That was why I responded the way I did.” He added, “But in fact, it was just not acceptable.”

Ahn Cheol-soo also spoke about the party’s Supreme Council members Tae Yong-ho and Kim Jae-won being subject to the party’s ethics committee and said, “Kim had a very negative impact on the party by giving people the impression that the party was being controlled by a particular group.” As for Tae, Ahn asked, “Didn’t he suggest the possibility that the Office of the President could intervene in the party’s candidate nominations?” The PPP legislator argued that eventually both men were responsible for the party losing the people’s trust and support and for creating a bleak outlook for next year’s parliamentary elections. He said, “We really need to sternly hold them responsible.”