Kim Dong-yeon, a candidate for the Democratic Party of Korea presidential primary, pointed out on the 18th that "three years ago, I promised a constitutional amendment for a decentralized presidential system and a shortening of presidential terms, but efforts towards this have been absent" towards candidate Lee Jae-myung.
On this day, Kim said at the Democratic Party of Korea presidential primary candidate TV debate held at MBC in Mapo District, Seoul, "During the last presidential election, I worked to extend the democratic forces' regime in alliance with this candidate."
Kim noted, "At the time, we agreed on a change of government and national unity, and the first of the five items was the constitutional amendment," adding, "Afterward, I had many expectations, but I felt that this candidate had not made such efforts even though he was re-elected as party leader twice."
In response, this candidate explained, "(In the last presidential election) I was unable to fulfill the promise of a constitutional amendment because I was not elected as president," and noted, "It was also difficult to push for changes to the election law due to opposition from the People Power Party."
He continued, "I believe that a decentralized constitutional amendment is something that must be done now," adding, "However, currently, it is practically impossible to conduct a constitutional amendment without revising the law on referendums."
Kim emphasized, "I cannot agree with the statement that the promise could not be kept because I was not elected as president," and asserted, "It is the duty of a politician to put in efforts for a decentralized presidential system and political reform from their respective positions."