“‘3총3김’?… It Should Center Around the Party Leader”, Amidst Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, receiving a guilty verdict in the first trial for violating the Public Official Election Act, Democratic Party lawmaker Jung Sung-ho emphasized, “He is the leader of the main opposition party and a currently serving National Assembly member,” questioning whether it is feasible to deprive such a person of candidacy eligibility for future elections.
Known as the head of the pro-Lee faction and a former legal professional, Representative Jung said on CBS Radio’s “Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show” on the 18th, “I never expected the sentence to reach such an extent.”
He continued, “One of the problematic remarks (made by Lee) was on a general program broadcast, and another during a Q&A session with an assembly member during a parliamentary audit. Did those really influence the election that much?” He added, “It’s quite questionable whether imposing a candidacy ban based on such interviews is possible and if it denies the people’s right to choose.”
Jung stated, “I think there might have been some misunderstandings regarding the application of the law and facts in the first trial judgment,” and expressed, “If it goes to the appeals court and if the judges rule according to principle, it could be overturned.”
Regarding the criticism from Han Dong-hoon, leader of the People Power Party, who called the Democratic Party’s rallies “the worst grounds for increased sentencing,” he said, “I believe that some excessive remarks from party members and criticism of judges are inappropriate,” although he rebuffed, “However, criticism of the ruling is possible.”
Concerning the claims for “judge impeachment” raised by some hardline Democratic Party supporters, he stated, “It doesn’t meet the grounds for impeachment, and criticizing and slandering a judge for making a ruling is not desirable.”
Regarding the mention of ‘Plan B’ and the ‘3Chong 3Kim’ (former Prime Ministers Kim Boo-kyum, Lee Nak-yon, Jeong Sye-kyun, former Governor Kim Kyung-soo, Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon, and former lawmaker Kim Du-gwan) amid Lee’s judicial risks, he dismissed it as “a personal view of former Democratic Innovation Party leader Jeon Byung-heon’s who has significant aversion towards the Democratic Party,” and added, “None of the former prime ministers or our figures think that way.”
He further commented, “The general thought among the majority of party members and lawmakers is that we should unite around the party leader, uncover the truth, and put our utmost effort into properly responding to the trial.”