Lee Jun-seok, the Reform Party presidential candidate, said on the 26th, “I will ask candidate Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party of Korea about the reason for the 'Turtle Island' suicide bombing remark at the last TV debate (on the 27th).”
Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party of Korea presidential candidate, is under attack from the conservative camp for touting his achievement during his term as Gyeonggi Province governor, attracting the artificial surf park 'Wave Park' in Turtle Island during a campaign rally in Siheung on the 24th.
The candidate stated, “At that time, I coaxed the Siheung mayor and companies, saying, ‘If you come to Gyeonggi Turtle Island, we will take care of (the permits) ourselves,’ and pushed through the permits and construction completion in just two years,” adding, “It’s a boast. A boast.”
The candidate spoke to reporters after the 'Korea Broadcasting Journalist Club's invitation debate' held at the Korean Broadcasting Hall in Mokdong, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul.
He noted, “It is pointless to strategize for the (TV debate) at this point,” stating he didn’t expect candidate Lee Jae-myung to bring up 'hotel economics' again in the second debate.
He added, “In the first and second debates, candidate Lee Jae-myung has effectively eliminated himself, and I’m curious about what self-destruction he is preparing next.”
The candidate also expressed his stance regarding former President Park Geun-hye's visit to the birthplace of former President Park Chung-hee and his wife, Yuk Young-soo. He said, “The People Power Party is going for a strategy to prevent themselves from losing votes rather than a strategy to win, which is evident. Can (former President Park Geun-hye) visiting the birthplace of Yuk Young-soo lower Lee Jae-myung's approval ratings?”
Former President Park plans to visit the birthplace of her father, former President Park Chung-hee in Gumi, Gyeongbuk, and Yuk Young-soo's birthplace in Okcheon, Chungbuk on the 27th. This is her first public schedule outside since the official campaign period for the 21st presidential election began. On the 24th, she met with People Power Party presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo at her residence in Daegu.
The candidate commented on Kim Yong-tae, the emergency committee chairman of People Power Party, asking him to propose conditions for unification, saying, “To be honest, I’m not interested in unification,” and added, “If Kim Moon-soo thinks it’s important to block Lee Jae-myung, he can just resign.”
The candidate criticized Kweon Seong-dong, the floor leader of People Power Party, saying, “It’s a really convenient world. After making one person look like a fool, no one has physically come to apologize,” and asked, “If that’s the case, why do we fight over historical issues with Japan?”
On the same day, when asked if he would be willing to apologize for leaving the party during Lee Jun-seok’s tenure as party leader, Kweon responded, “Since Kim Yong-tae already expressed regret and apologized, the issue is resolved.”