GNP Lawmaker Baek Seung-hong Withdraws From Party

Grand National Party (GNP) lawmaker Baek Seung-hong (Daegu Joong-gu) showed his revulsion at the dealings of party leaders regarding the stir created by leaked data from an inspection of the party’s affairs by announcing his withdrawal from the party.

Baek’s departure was the first from a local constituency lawmaker since Choe Byung-yul became the party’s leader last June, and it is predicted that conflicts over the nomination will now intensify. After Baek’s withdrawal, the GNP currently holds 148 seats on the floor.

Baek held a press conference at the party office in Daegu and said that he had made many requests for an investigation into the manipulation and leakage of the party’s inspection data, but that party leaders had ignored him. “The request I made for a reorganization of the nomination examining committee had also been rejected, so I decided to withdraw,” said Baek.

He announced that he would run for Daegu Seo-gu, which is lawmaker Kang Jae-sup’s constituency, instead of his current Daegu Joong-gu, as a non-partisan candidate in the upcoming election in April.

Meanwhile, non-parliamentary chairmen of the metropolitan and Honam (Cholla-do Provinces) areas are showing signs of following the secession with action. “About 10 non-parliamentary chairmen in the metropolitan district are discussing what to do next,” said a Seoul chairman. “We will seek a joint stance after watching how the party leaders cope with the current situation.”

Yeon-Wook Jung jyw11@donga.com