People Power Party floor leader Jeong Jeom-sik said Wednesday that the party must urgently overcome a factional culture so entrenched that lawmakers from rival camps refuse to shake hands or even speak to one another.
Appearing on Maeil Business Newspaper's YouTube channel, Jeong said the party must restore public trust through internal unity before it can mount an effective opposition against the ruling bloc or address everyday economic concerns. "I am working hard to move in that direction going forward," he said.
On the party ethics committee's recent deliberations over disciplinary action against lawmakers aligned with former party leader Han Dong-hoon, Jeong said such measures were possible in principle but must clear a high bar. "Any disciplinary action must be something that the majority of the public, party members and lawmakers can genuinely accept," he said.
He added that the ethics committee on Tuesday had not reached any conclusion but had reviewed the overall scope of the cases under consideration. "I expect the process to proceed in a way that a large majority of the public, party members and lawmakers can accept, and that the outcome will reflect that," he said.
Jeong shrugged off suggestions that he was distancing himself from party leader Jang Dong-hyeok. "I find it hard to agree with the assessment that I am drawing a line," he said, adding that the party leader and floor leader hold distinct roles — overseeing party affairs and representing the parliamentary caucus, respectively. "Our views do not always have to be identical, but we consult each other whenever necessary," he said.
On the Democratic Party of Korea's move to claim the chairmanship of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee during negotiations over the second-half legislative session, Jeong said it had long been parliamentary convention for the second-largest party — the PPP — to hold that post. "The judiciary committee chair must serve as a check and balance; only then can dialogue and compromise be possible within the Assembly," he said.
He said the Democratic Party had seized the chairmanship to push through a special prosecutor act that would drop charges against defendant Lee Jae Myung. "Under these circumstances, we cannot agree to or cooperate with the formation of the legislative session," he said, adding that the PPP was pushing back forcefully.
Jeong said senior floor aides from both parties had begun holding preliminary talks again Tuesday. He said he planned to convene a meeting of senior lawmakers to hear their views on the direction of the party's legislative strategy.
On the Democratic Party's push to abolish prosecutors' supplementary investigation rights, Jeong said those rights existed not for prosecutors' benefit but for the public's. "A criminal justice system without supplementary investigation rights will be a world where victims are left weeping tears of blood," he said.
He cited the case of Jang Yun-gi, in which prosecutors uncovered evidence of rape and murder that police had concealed. "I urge Democratic Party lawmakers to think of the victims, think of the people, and build a criminal justice system that truly serves the public," he said.
Regarding reports that some PPP members had joined forces with the Democratic Party during elections for the leadership of local and metropolitan councils, Jeong said the party had directed that winners' assemblies be convened under the chairmanship of local party chapter heads to determine council leadership — yet some members in certain regions had colluded with the Democratic Party to divide up council speaker and standing committee chair posts. "I am deeply disappointed, and stern measures must follow," he said.
Jeong said the special prosecutor investigation into the National Election Commission should be led by the opposition. "Only a special prosecutor recommended by an opposition party with no stake in the matter can conduct a genuinely fair and objective investigation," he said. "We will keep making the case until that is accepted."
On the government's real estate policy, Jeong said bringing down housing prices required an increase in supply and available listings. He called for revitalizing privately led redevelopment and reconstruction projects, and for introducing 1,000-won housing and ultra-low-interest home loans for young people so that the younger generation could live without worrying about childbirth, child-rearing or housing.
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