Prime Minister Kim Min-seok on Monday stressed the need to supplement the "one member, one vote system for delegates and voting party members," which will be introduced for the first time at the Democratic Party of Korea's Aug. 17 national convention. As the system was a key pledge of former party leader Jung Chung-rae, the remarks are interpreted as targeting Jung.
Speaking at a special lecture on "DJ's Political Theory for Young Politicians" hosted by the Kim Dae-jung Political School at the Kim Dae-jung Convention Center in Gwangju that day, Kim said, "The party sovereignty, one member one vote, and full primary system that we aspire to could, in the worst case, turn the party into a cooperative rather than a party with proper historical roots."
He then urged, "Beyond simply advocating party sovereignty and a one member, one vote system, we must design and create how it can become genuine." He added, "For true party sovereignty to be realized, the party must carry out institutional reforms so that four things can be continuously guaranteed: more information, more debate, more authority, and more obligations."
Kim also said, "Criticizing the president with excessive language or attitude, saying 'I could judge this better,' could, in terms of the past, potentially be connected to something like a rebellion driven by excessive confidence." He further pointed out, "Going in a direction that disrupts the overall ranks or undermines the overall leadership ultimately results in shaking our entire force and leadership."
"The Democratic Party convention is not about who is aligned with whom," Kim said. "It is a forum to discuss issues such as how to solve problems for the people, when young people are suffering like this; how to create alternatives, including dissolution, if young people and countless other citizens believe the election commission is wrong; and what basic framework the party that will lead state affairs should be composed of."
He also said, "I have lived through the Democratic Party with my whole body. Since learning politics from President Kim Dae-jung, I have never once deviated from the Kim Dae-jung line." This appears to take into account the recent situation in which former leader Jung has repeatedly highlighted his legitimacy in contrast to Kim, who has a history of leaving the party in the past.
