Song Young-gil: "Pro-Moon Faction Wanted Lee Jaemyung to Lose"... Ko Minjeong: "Are You Trying to Become a Cautionary Tale?"

Song Young-gil Criticizes Pro-Moon Faction,
Komin Jeong Responds with Rebuttal

Former Democratic Party leader Song Young-gil has claimed that, during the 2022 presidential election, the pro-Moon (pro-Moon Jae-in) faction hoped for the defeat of then-presidential candidate Lee Jaemyung. In response, Democratic Party lawmaker Komin Jeong pushed back, asking, "Are you trying to become a cautionary tale for younger politicians?"

Congresswoman Go Minjung. Photo by Yonhap News

On March 23, Assemblywoman Ko shared an article on her Facebook page that reported on Song's appearance the previous day on the YouTube channel "Kyunghyang TV," where he said, "At the time, a significant number of pro-Moon members did not participate in the campaign."

In the video, former Representative Song stated, "I became party leader by fighting against the pro-Moon faction," and insisted, "If I had not become party leader, it would not have been easy for Lee Jaemyung to become the presidential candidate." He also claimed, "A significant number of lawmakers from the so-called pro-Moon faction, who opposed both Lee and me, did not participate in Lee Jaemyung's campaign during the 2022 presidential election," and said, "In reality, these were forces that wanted to see him lose."

These remarks were made while explaining the background of Song's decision to run for Seoul mayor in the local elections held immediately after the 20th presidential election, which resulted in his parliamentary seat (Gyeyang-eul, Incheon) being given up to President Lee. He said this was a choice intended to protect President Lee's political career after the election.

Former Representative Song Younggil Shares His Thoughts on Reinstatement. Photo by Yonhap News.

In response, Assemblywoman Ko pointed out, "Although our party suffered a heavy defeat in Seoul in the last local elections, our candidates for district mayor did not shift the blame onto others for that loss." She continued, "All of them bowed their heads before the residents, saying it was due to their own shortcomings, and as the party faced difficult circumstances, they comforted disappointed supporters by saying that, even though he was from Incheon, former Representative Song stepped up to run for Seoul mayor."

She then addressed Song directly, saying, "Younger politicians learn by watching their seniors," and asked, "Will you choose to be a role model, or will you become a cautionary example?" Assemblywoman Ko also took aim at rumors of Song running in the Gyeyang-eul by-election in Incheon, quipping, "You called yourself a Seoulite, but now is it Incheon again?"

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.