Party leader demands action over lawmaker's 'kick' remark

Jang Dong-hyuk, the leader of South Korea's conservative People Power Party, has demanded appropriate party action against lawmaker Seo Beom-soo for a remark that trivialized a violent crime. Jang stated that Seo's comment, made in reference to the "Busan spinning kick assault case," was not merely inappropriate but "unthinkable, even as a mistake."

Speaking at a press conference, Jang emphasized that the issue extends beyond Seo as an individual, declaring, "This has become a problem for the entire People Power Party. These kinds of things are dragging down the approval ratings of the People Power Party."

Seo had reportedly said to fellow lawmaker Jin Jong-oh, "Lawmaker Jin Jong-oh, how about a spinning kick?" before a debate on opposing the abolition of the prosecution's supplementary investigation rights. Seo later issued a statement apologizing to the victim and acknowledging his remarks.

“

This has become a problem for the entire People Power Party. These kinds of things are dragging down the approval ratings of the People Power Party.

Jang also addressed a petition signed by over 22,000 party members demanding his resignation. He questioned whether the will of this group truly represented the entire party membership of over one million, suggesting it might be another strategy to destabilize the leadership.

Furthermore, Jang called for a special prosecutor investigation into a single-stock leveraged ETF policy, suspecting "lobbying or corrupt collusion" rather than a genuine policy decision. He pointed out that the sons of the former Presidential Chief of Staff for Policy and the current head of the Financial Supervisory Service work at Mirae Asset Management, a company involved with such ETFs. He also criticized a police raid on Starbucks Korea over its "May 18 commemoration marketing" as "a ridiculous investigation by a ridiculous police force."

“

Lawmaker Jin Jong-oh, how about a spinning kick?