This poll I think isn’t too surprising considering Ban Ki-moon’s name recognition within Korea and the fact he really isn’t tied to any bad scandals which makes him a safe pick in most people’s minds for President:
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon led in the latest support poll for South Korea’s next potential president, giving him yet another hopeful sign that he could defeat all other seasoned politicians now busy gearing up for the country’s highest office in next year’s election.
Ban topped the poll conducted by the JoongAng Ilbo of 1,000 adults nationwide by receiving 32.7 percent support from eligible voters, nearly twice that of Moon Jae-in’s 17.3 percent.
Ahn Cheol-soo of the People’s Party received 8.1 percent while Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon received 4.2 percent, trailed by former Saenuri chairman Kim Moo-sung with 3.9 percent. Former Seoul mayor Oh Se-hoon garnered 3.7 percent, followed by former Gyeonggi governor Sohn Hak-kyu with 3.2 percent.
The JoongAng’s poll, conducted on Sept. 20 and 21 with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, comes at a time of growing speculation over whether Ban will declare his bid for presidential office upon completing his second term at the United Nations at the end of this year. [Joong Ang Ilbo]
Yeah, good luck with this especially in South Korea where Internet mud slinging is almost a national past time:
Ahead of its official launch, a special interest group supporting UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has asked similar groups linked with other potential presidential candidates to agree not to maliciously attack or slander each other.
The group, named Banditburi, or firefly in Korean (a play on the UN chief’s surname), is scheduled to hold its inaugural meeting on Nov. 10.
Banditburi has reached out to groups that support liberals Moon Jae-in, the former chairman of the main opposition Minjoo Party, and Ahn Cheol-soo, former chairman of the People’s Party, to agree to avoid any mudslinging ahead of next year’s presidential elections.
Kim Sung-hee, chairman of the preparatory committee to launch the group for Ban, told the JoongAng Ilbo over phone on Wednesday, “We asked other groups supporting key potential presidential contenders, including the opposition’s Moon Jae-in and Ahn Cheol-soo, as well as the ruling party’s Kim Moo-sung [former chairman of the Saenuri Party], to forge a gentlemen’s agreement.”
He continued, “The political scene is messy as is, so we proposed that at least groups like ours should not engage in slander or malicious comments online, or muckraking of any kind.” [Joong Ang Ilbo]
It looks like the North Koreans are doing the Park administration a favor with their continued provocations:
Opposition parties are toning down their opposition to the Park Geun-hye administration’s plan to allow the deployment of a controversial U.S. antimissile system.
Following the North’s continuing nuclear and missile provocations, South Korea and the United States agreed that a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (Thaad) battery will be deployed in the South.
China and Russia have protested the decision, expressing concern that its powerful radar could be used to spy on their territories.
“Our only bargaining chip with China is Thaad,” said Ahn Cheol-soo, former chairman of the People’s Party, during an interview on Monday. “If China agrees to sanction the North, we should recant the deployment plan. That should be our negotiation strategy.”
Ahn’s remark was a departure from the People’s Party’s adamant opposition to the Thaad deployment plan, as it can be interpreted that the party will not disagree with the deployment if China does not aggressively punish the North.
Rep. Joo Seong-yong, a senior party official, also told reporters on Monday that the party will follow the decision of the National Assembly.
The People’s Party formally expressed its opposition to the Thaad deployment as its party line in July. It has also urged other opposition lawmakers to join its protest. The latest remarks by the top party official, therefore, suggest a change.
Sources in the party said concern grew about reactions to its protests after the North’s fifth nuclear test. “Public opposition to Thaad weakened,” a party official said. “And there was a possibility of a sixth nuclear test. The sense of risk grew inside the party that we may gain nothing by insisting on our protest.” [Joong Ang Ilbo]
You can read more at the link, but it sounds like the Korean left is saying that they never did care about people’s health and their protests were all politically driven.
If she earned her money legally what business is it of anyone on how she spends it? If anything she is a walking economic stimulus plan!:
Cho Yoon-sun, a nominee for the minister of culture, sports and tourism, was grilled at a confirmation hearing, Wednesday, over various allegations including her excessive consumption which opposition lawmakers said goes beyond common sense.
The hearing by the National Assembly Education, Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee took place after President Park Geun-hye nominated Cho to be the minister on Aug. 16.
The morning session of the hearing was crippled due to wrangling between rival lawmakers over an issue of a supplementary budget. The afternoon session was held with only opposition lawmakers from the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK) and the minor opposition People’s Party attending. Lawmakers from the ruling Saenuri Party refused to participate in the session.
One of major controversies facing Cho was her alleged extravagant lifestyle where she has spent about 500 million won ($448,000) a year.
Rep. Kim Byung-wook from the MPK, who estimated the amount of Cho’s annual consumption after reviewing her property details and tax payment, said it was also unclear where and how Cho and her husband have spent about 1.6 billion won from 2013 to 2015.
Rep. Kim said Cho currently has a property worth an estimated 5.2 billion won, noting that this has increased by 510 million won compared to her property worth 4.69 billion won reported in 2013 when she was serving as the minister of gender equality and family.
When the income of her and her husband was added up, the couple earned a total of 3.49 billion won from 2013 to 2015, Rep. Kim said, noting that the amount of her estimated annual expense is against the common sense of ordinary people.
Kim added that the couple provided the details of expenditures for the past three years only up to 230 million won, falling short of explaining how 1.6 billion won was spent.
Cho’s alleged excessive consumption also came into the spotlight during a 2013 hearing when she was a nominee to be the gender equality minister. At that time, she said, “My husband and I are generous when meeting friends and colleagues. So we were unable to manage our income well.”
But the public repulsion seems to have not been eased after it was known that the couple has spent only 1.1 percent of their income in donations for the past three years. [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but it sounds like another one of these phony political scandals.
Cho Yun-sun (R), the nominee for culture minister, talks to an aide before her confirmation hearing at the National Assembly in Seoul on Aug. 31, 2016. Cho is a close confidante of President Park Geun-hye, having served as her minister of gender equality and senior secretary for political affairs. (Yonhap)
It looks like some Korean politicians needed a bump in the polls by making a Dokdo trip:
Taean County head Han Sang-ki (2nd from L) delivers a stone from South Korea’s westernmost island to Ulleung County head Choi Soo-il (2nd from R) during their visit to the nation’s easternmost islets of Dokdo on Aug. 15, 2016. (Yonhap)
A group of South Korean lawmakers from the ruling and opposition parties visited their country’s easternmost islets of Dokdo on Monday as the nation celebrated the 71st anniversary of Korea’s liberation from Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule.
The group of 10 lawmakers, led by Saenuri Party Rep. Na Kyung-won, said the trip was intended to reassert South Korea’s sovereignty of the islets and was an “inherent” part of their parliamentary activities.
It is the first such trip by South Korean lawmakers since Aug. 14, 2013, when another group of lawmakers traveled to the islets to counter Japan’s territorial claims to Dokdo.
“(I) hope that there will be more such visits in the future,” Na told Yonhap News Agency over the phone. “More attention and support (for Dokdo) on the part of the National Assembly is needed.” [Yonhap]
You can read more at the link, but I think the assemblyman is right that they need to do more to show their support for Dokdo. First of all they should have taken picture of all them trying to eat a Japanese flag. After that one of them should have chopped their finger off, while another stuck a knife in their gut, followed by drinking weed killer. Finally one of them should have covered themselves in bees while holding a sign declaring Dokdo as Korean territory.
That is how real defenders of Dokdo show their patriotism! This group of National Assemblymen are just amateurs with much to learn.
Who do these leftist politicians serve, the people of South Korea or China?:
First-term Rep. Kim Young-ho of the Minjoo Party of Korea answers questions at Gimpo International Airport Monday departing on a three-day visit to Beijing. [CHO MOON-GYU]President Park Geun-hye Monday lashed out at political rivals’ opposition to the deployment of a U.S.-made missile defense system, saying issues of national security should be bipartisan.
The president’s sharpest criticism was aimed at six first-term Minjoo Party lawmakers who embarked on a three-day visit to Beijing on Monday, describing them as siding with Beijing on the missile system deployment, which it vociferously opposes.
At a regular senior secretariat meeting at the Blue House, Park noted it was the basic responsibility of politicians “to work in a bipartisan manner and avoid creating internal divisions when it comes to issues of national security.” [Joong Ang Ilbo]
You can read more at the link, but this is just another example of how the Korean left is trying to keep the THAAD issue alive to use as a political weapon during next year’s Presidential race.
Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump has taken another swipe at South Korea:
U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump denounced the free trade pact with South Korea as a “job killing” deal Thursday, pledging to totally renegotiate what he called “horrible” trade agreements.
It was not the first time Trump has voiced criticism of the Korea-U.S. trade agreement, but Thursday’s remark carried greater weight as it came in his first speech since formally winning the nomination at the national convention under way in Cleveland.
In a nationally televised nomination acceptance speech, Trump criticized his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton for supporting many trade deals hurting the American middle class, including the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and for supporting China’s entrance into the World Trade Organization.
“She supported the job-killing trade deal with South Korea. She has supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The TPP will not only destroy our manufacturing, but it will make America subject to the rulings of foreign governments,” Trump said. [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but considering how the Korean left was against the US-ROK FTA does this mean that the Korean left are fans of Donald Trump? Now that would be an odd pairing.
