Chu Mi-ae “Reshuffles Parliamentary Members from Ho-nam”

As Chu Mi-ae, chairperson of the Board of Election in the Millennium Democratic Party(MDP), was known to have rejected the four nominated candidates, including the former MDP leader Park Sang-chun, the floor leader Yoo Yong-tae, and Reps. Kim Ok-doo and Choi Jae-seung on March 30, great internal conflicts are expected to follow.

It was known that Chairperson Chu will re-nominate new proper candidates in those constituencies or leave those districts as a non-nomination area if there are no new figures to be found, and will later push to persuade the elected independent person to join the MDP.

In response to this, the parties concerned, including the floor leader Yoo, strongly opposed, saying that “these actions for those who tried to prevent the party from separating and keep the party safe in difficult times are a betrayal at the moment of candidate registration.”

The person who is closely concerned with the Board of Election said on this day that “it is a promise that Chairperson Chu has made with the members of the party and the people to reshuffle the public nomination for those who do not fit the party’s identity when she accepted the position of chairman of the Election Board,” adding that, “Chu is going to take this opportunity to recover the people’s expectation and trust.”

Accordingly, the Millennium Democratic Party entered into a specific re-nomination procedure this evening calling an urgent “special committee for the re-nomination of public office” lead by the former NIS (National Intelligence Service) chairman, Lee Jong-chan.

Chairperson Chu camp was said to have included five more people to the re-examination list in addition to these four people.

Chairperson Chu’s camp explained that Congressmen Kim and Choi’s nominations were rejected in order to reform the party by changing the regional attachment for the people from Ho-nam, and the reason for the floor leader Yoo and the former representative Park was to ask responsibility for “cooperation with the Grand National Party and the Millennium Democratic Party.”

Sung-Won Park Yong-Gwan Jung swpark@donga.com yongari@donga.com