PPP’s candidates for party leader election launch last-minute offensive

From left, candidates for the People\'s Power Party leader election Won Hee-ryong, Na Kyung-won, Han Dong-hoon and Yoon Sang-hyun are preparing for a debate held in CBS Kim Hyun-jung\'s News Show Special at CBS headquarters in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, on July 17. Provided by the National Assembly

With two days to go before the start of the party voting at the ruling People’s Power Party (PPP)’s national convention, the pro-Yoon Suk-yeol faction has launched a last-minute offensive by referring to a "special counsel investigation into Han Dong-hoon" claimed by the opposition parties. In his final joint speech on July 17, candidate for party leader Won Hee-ryong, who is supported by the pro-Yoon faction, highlighted judicial risks, comparing rival Han to former Governor of South Gyeongsang Province Kim Kyung-soo, who was sentenced to prison for the opinion rigging scandal in 2018. Han criticized Won, saying "He only has been doing negative campaigning throughout the convention."

“(Han) says he can accept a special counsel investigation (into the death of Marine Corporal Chae Su-geun) targeting the president, but never accept a special counsel investigation targeting himself,” Won said at a joint speech of Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi, and Gangwon Provinces at the Goyang Sono Arena in Gyeonggi Province. ”(But) a special counsel investigation for Han is already a reality.” Won added, “About his allegation of operating a ‘comment team,’ Han said they are all voluntary comments by his supporters. It's exactly the same as what former Governor Kim said at the time of the opinion rigging scandal. The result was a two-year prison sentence."

“I'm against a special counsel investigation into Han, but the opposition will unconditionally push for it,” Won said, highlighting judicial risks. ”If the facts come out, it's a serious crime, so we can't protect him.”

He also criticized Han's own proposal for a special counsel investigation into the death of Marine Corporal Chae. “A special counsel investigation will lead to impeachment,” Won said, adding, ”If the party leader and the president clash over this, the party will be shattered.”

When asked by reporters after his speech whether it was necessary to investigate the suspicion of Han operating a comment team, Won stressed the need for an investigation, saying, "As long as it has already come to light, the facts will inevitably be revealed."

He said, “A special counsel investigation into the death of Marine Corporal Chae, which has no substance, and the allegation of operating a comment team is different,” adding, “(Han) cannot deny the part through a third party.” He also said, “If the facts are clean and unrelated, he would be confident in his defense, but the pattern of early progress is the same as that of the former governor Kim at the time of the opinion rigging scandal. So I'm not sure.”

External support from the pro-Yoon faction also came in an effort to dampen Han's momentum.

Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo joined the attack, saying that if the allegation of Han operating a comment team were true, “A special counsel investigation should be introduced.”

Governor of North Gyeongsang Province Lee Chul-woo, also wrote on his social media account, “If the president and the party leader cannot communicate again, I am deeply concerned about the future of the party and the country.”

In his speech, Han emphasized the struggle against the giant opposition parties but made no mention of a special counsel investigation into him.

Speaking to reporters after his speech, Han criticized Won, saying, “He only does negative campaigning and personal attacks throughout the national convention," adding, "We regret that the whole convention is filled with personal attacks." He continued, “This kind of negative campaigning, which has no facts or grounds, confuses the whole convention, and it goes on like this until the end.”

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.