PPP Chief Jang Calls Yong Hye-in's Withdrawal a Decision of the 'Leftist Cartel'

Jang Dong-hyuk, chairman of the People Power Party (PPP), posted on Facebook on the 13th regarding the resignation of Gender Equality and Family Minister nominee Yong Hye-in, saying, "Nominee Yong chose to keep her proportional representative seat while giving up the ministerial post." Jang claimed, "It was not her own decision, but a decision made by the 'leftist cartel' seeking to protect their own interests." He added, "The nominee's resignation should not be the end of it," and asked, "Did she realize she was about to lose both by trying to hold on to both?"

Jung Chung-rae, the PPP's floor leader, also stated on Facebook on the 13th, "Representative Yong Hye-in is not only unfit to be a ministerial nominee but also lacks the qualification to be a member of the National Assembly," urging her to "strongly consider resigning from her Assembly seat." Jung pointed out that "Representative Yong received proportional representation nominations from the Democratic Party twice," calling it a failure of the Democratic Party's vetting process.

Jung attributed responsibility for the incident to the presidential office, saying, "This fiasco is a clear vetting failure by the presidential office's personnel line," and added, "President Lee Jae-myung should offer a public apology and take responsible action against the presidential office's personnel line, which failed in its vetting."

He also raised issues with the vetting process itself, saying, "While the vetting of the nominee was abandoned, the conduct of People Power Party lawmakers mocking and demeaning the difficult circumstances of a minor party, along with malicious, distorted reporting by some media outlets that did not even guarantee a right of rebuttal, continued endlessly." He emphasized, "Having nothing to be ashamed of, I wanted to explain everything one by one before the people. However, the People Power Party ultimately refused to schedule a confirmation hearing."