Yoon Seok-yeol Wins Conservative (PPP) Nomination for Presidential Candidate (ROK)

[soryang]

(Source- JTBC News 11.5) The final selection for the People's Powers Party candidate for president of South Korea was announced last night 1:45am EST. Yoon Seok-yeol, the former Prosecutor General, was selected as the conservative opposition party's candidate, over Hong Jun-pyo. The formula for selection was based on a 50/50 formula of party representative votes averaged with the results of a popular poll among voters. The above graphic shows that Yoon won the party member vote by an overwhelming 58 percent (approx) to 35 percent margin over Hong, despite the popular vote in the poll going to Hong over Yoon by a 10 percent margin (48 to 38 percent approx).


(Source- JTBC News 11.5) This graphic shows the relative percent of People's Power Party member votes garnered by each party candidate participating in the final stage of the nomination race. Yoon Seok-yeol placed first with almost 48 percent; Hong Jun-pyo, second, with 41.5 percent; Yoo Seung-min with 7.47; and Hwan Hui-ryong with 3.17 percent.

While some polls show that Yoon can beat the Democratic Party candidate for president Lee Jae-myung, the presence of a strong third party conservative candidate in the final race for president could make Lee Jae-myung the winner in March 2022. Yoon and the PPP will apparently engage in "unification" discussions with potential candidate Ahn Chul-soo, who has his own political party to prevent conservative votes from being diluted in the final race for president.

On an editorial note, it is sad for South Korea, that the constellation of vested interests in South Korean politics, particularly those in the PPP have rallied around Yoon despite the fact that Hong is more popular. Hong's policy positions are no more attractive than Yoon's. The difference lies in the several investigations currently pending against Yoon's family members, colleagues in prosecution offices, and Yoon himself based upon credible allegations of corruption, misuse of public office, fraud on the courts and so on. Yoon's wife is under investigation for stock manipulation, his mother in law was already convicted in a lower court of what Americans would call "medicare fraud," and Yoon himself left the office of Prosecutor General while under a cloud of accusations of ethical violations, including politicizing the office, interfering in investigations, and unlawful investigations of sitting judges. Yoon was suspended from office by a disciplinary committee which he challenged in court. The disciplinary committee's decision to suspend him from office for two months was ultimately upheld by a court which noted that Yoon had no grounds for appeal, and that he could have been dismissed from office for his misconduct. Yoon's former office (The Supreme Prosecutor's Office) is currently under investigation for preparing politically motivated private charges against his critics and democratic politicians. Those judges and prosecutors who have investigations or prosecutions of persons in Yoon's "network" or their critics and opponents put before them, cannot help but be intimidated by the prospect of Yoon potentially becoming the president of South Korea. Yoon as a candidate represents the worst of the so called "corrupt special interests" in South Korea, He is dull witted, superstitious, and arbitrary in disposition and will, if elected, become an authoritarian despot in all but name.

[Ghost Dog]

1. Thanks. Is this kind of State of affairs:

... several investigations currently pending against Yoon's family members, colleagues in prosecution offices, and Yoon himself based upon credible allegations of corruption, misuse of public office, fraud on the courts and so on. Yoon's wife is under investigation for stock manipulation, his mother in law was already convicted in a lower court of what Americans would call "medicare fraud," and Yoon himself left the office of Prosecutor General while under a cloud of accusations of ethical violations...

normal or exceptional in SK these days?

[soryang]

2. It has become the norm

I went through the other well known Korean English language and one Japanese English language report on Yoon's nomination win after I wrote my opinion on the PPP primary campaign results. These articles basically ignored the red flags surrounding the type of politics Yoon brings to the table. Because Yoon and his cadre had brought politically motivated prosecutions into the mainstream after the Park Geun-hye impeachment trial, it is treated as on the one hand and on the other hand activity. In other words, the left prosecuted former presidents Park Geun-hye, and Lee Myung-bak, who are now both in prison for long terms due to their corruption and abuse of power, so turn about is fair play. Ironically, it was Yoon himself who participated in the investigation team of prosecutors who convicted former President Park. Recently, he praised former dictator Chun Doo-hwan, to more clearly identify himself with the far right admirers of authoritarian government.

I've written numerous posts on the subject of political prosecutions in South Korea in the last 18 months or so. Yoon Seok-yeol and his prosecutor colleagues and the dominantly conservative press in South Korea cynically treat the fabricated charges and treatment of former Justice Minister Cho Guk and his family as in the same category as the successful and legitimate prosecutions of Park and Lee MB. This pox on both their houses approach, is a device by which the corrupt special interests in South Korea, the chaebol particularly in the media, the land developers, bankers, political families, etc., use to protect themselves from prosecution by blocking reforms of the administration of justice. Democratic candidate for president Lee Jae-myung has been the target of prosecutions for years it seems, and nothing stuck. He was acquitted of every bogus charge. Now the right, Yoon, the PPP, and the press have fabricated new charges involving a real estate development in the city of Seongnam when Lee Jae-myung was the mayor. This is the Hwachon Daewoo scandal. It turns out that all the people who made grift on this scandal unlawfully were politicians or family members of conservative politicians. Yoon's family was also implicated indirectly in a suspicious looking sale of his father's home. Lee's state of the art "public private" partnership brought Seongnam hundreds of millions of dollars in public revenues. He didn't misappropriate funds, he turned the private capital project to public benefit. I can't cover the entire background of this dark political environment in one report. The entire genre of this kind of sordid politics currently the norm on the right, is referred to "press- prosecution collusion."

Reforms were recently enacted to put a stop to the abuse of prosecutorial powers by politically motivated prosecutors and media. If Yoon is elected they will be stillborn. Current investigations of Yoon, and his professional colleagues by the newly formed Office to Investigate Crimes by High Government Officials aren't likely to conclude during the current democratic Moon Jae-in administration. I'll put a link to just one of articles on this problem on my blog. The tag Yoon Seok-yeol on my blog will bring up a least fifteen posts with specific examples of malfeasance or corruption among Yoon, his family, and his prosecutor colleagues, as well the press collusion making it possible.

Battle for Control of South Korea's Justice System
https://civilizationdiscontents.blogspot.com/2020/07/battle-for-control-of-south-koreas.html

[Ghost Dog]

3. I see. A dark political environment, indeed...

and sounds not dissimilar to what is happening here in Spain, where such corruption has been described as "the national sport" and where the politically-controlable high level judicial power has nothing like an Office to Investigate Crimes by High Government Officials to count on.

I shall be interested to follow your further reports!