[Anchor]
Internal fractures are deepening within the People Power Party as disciplinary procedures get underway against three incumbent lawmakers. Those facing discipline have pushed back, calling it a move to turn the party into a private tool for the party leader.
Reporter Kim Bo-mi has the details.
[Reporter]
Open disagreements surfaced during a People Power Party floor strategy meeting over the disciplinary issue surrounding Lawmaker Kwon Young-jin, who grabbed Floor Leader Jung Jeom-shik by the collar out of dissatisfaction with his standing committee assignment.
[Lawmaker Cho Eun-hee, People Power Party: When there is sincere reflection and apology, we should give them an opportunity to move forward together...]
[Lawmaker Yoo Young-ha, People Power Party: What is this Intelligence Committee secretary position anyway? A party where we must cover for each other just because we are comrades cannot exist, in my view.]
Lawmaker Jin Jong-oh, against whom disciplinary procedures were initiated for supporting independent candidate Han Dong-hoon in the Buk-gap by-election for the National Assembly in Busan, posted on social media, saying, "If this disciplinary action is for an unsubstantiated private cult of personality, I will firmly stand against it."
Lawmaker Joo Kyung-tae, who made phone calls urging the defeat of Deputy National Assembly Speaker Park Duk-hyum to lawmakers from other parties during the election of the opposition-allocated parliamentary vice speaker, stated that the party's Ethics Committee, which launched disciplinary procedures against him, has been reduced to a "private disciplinary committee for the party leader."
The party's Ethics Committee decided to initiate disciplinary procedures against these three incumbent lawmakers the day before yesterday (the 27th), and internal conflict within the committee is also growing.
Vice Chairman Woo Jong-hwan claimed that Ethics Committee Chairman Yoon Min-woo is operating the committee arbitrarily.
[Woo Jong-hwan, Vice Chairman, People Power Party Ethics Committee: You write the decision statement all by yourself. Phrases that were neither agreed upon by us nor known to us were included in the press release. This is completely an oath of allegiance. It's as if you are appointing yourself as Representative Jang's bodyguard.]
Amidst growing controversy over fairness, fueled by a "disciplinary initiation resolution" in which only three out of five committee members participated, outlooks suggest that the upcoming decision-making process regarding the disciplinary actions will not be smooth.
(Video reporting: Park Jin-ho, Lee Seung-hwan, Shin Dong-hwan | Video editing: Jang Hyun-ki | Design: Kim Han-gil)
※
Copying, redistribution, and unauthorized use in AI training are strictly prohibited.