Jang Donghyuk: "President Lee Must Step Down... Stronger Protest if Kim Seungwon Is Appointed"

Jang Donghyuk, leader of the People Power Party, commented on President Lee Jaemyung’s national press conference on the 18th, stating, “There was not a single issue for which he admitted any wrongdoing. Now it is time for him to step down from the presidency.” He further added, “If Kim Seungwon is appointed as Minister of Justice, we will consider and prepare even stronger means of protest.”

During a press briefing at the National Assembly that afternoon, Jang said, “Today's press conference was, in short, a declaration of abandoning the people and giving up on people’s livelihoods. He evaded answers to questions from the public and only responded to complaints from the left. Now it is time for the people to judge,” he stated.

Jang Donghyuk, leader of the People Power Party, is attending the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 17th. 2026.09.17 Photo by Dongju Yoon

Regarding President Lee’s remark that he has “no intention whatsoever of seeking re-election,” Jang said, “If that is the case, he should make an explicit declaration that he will not seek re-election. In the end, won't he later talk about leaving it up to the people's decision? Ultimately, it means he has not let go of his ambition for re-election.”

On the issue of the Special Prosecutor Act addressing prosecutorial fabrication and the argument to exclude the provision for withdrawal of indictment, he said, “Regardless of whether that particular clause is included, if the president wishes, he can withdraw an indictment at any time. There is only one answer the people want: for President Lee to confidently face trial.”

On the administration’s general policy direction, he stated, “President Lee claimed it was the process and methods that were lacking, not the direction itself, but that diagnosis is completely wrong. The direction was wrong to begin with, which is why both the process and the methods were wrong.” He added, “The 54 trillion won in losses caused to the people by a single leveraged ETF can only be addressed by a special prosecutor.”

Jang further stated, “By pursuing only reforms that cater to the left and trying to unify only that side, both reform and unification have failed, yet he still only looks to the left. President Lee is an incompetent and irresponsible leader who micromanages everything and causes the greatest suffering to the people.”

In response to a question about whether he plans to stage protests outside the National Assembly, Jang said, “He claimed that he would carefully consider the appointment of Minister Kim, but that is no different from stating he cannot give up the right to withdraw an indictment. We have decided to hold a public report rally next week, but if that is not enough, we will need to consider even more powerful means of protest.”

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