hankyoreh

all lawmakers are focussed on Ahn’s press conference to announce his presidential bid. (by Ahn Chang-gwang

By Son Won-je, staff reporter

The main news from the Sept. 19 press conference held by Ahn Cheol-soo was his announcement to run for the presidency, and the next question is whether Ahn will run against the Democratic United Party’s Moon Jae-in or if there will be a single opposition candidate. Four reporters at the conference asked the same question, trying to get a clear answer from Ahn.

Ahn avoided giving a clear answer, but he repeatedly emphasized two points. The first was “earnest change and innovation of the political sector.” And the second was “the need for the people’s consent.” And accordingly, because these two principles have not been reached, he said, “It is not proper to discuss the matter of a single candidate at this moment.”

Another reporter asked if Ahn could provide a more specific set of circumstances in which this discussion could take place. To this he answered, “It is not up to me to judge whether there was earnest change and reforms in politics. Only the people will be the judge of this. The only thing I can do is to try my very best so that people who want genuine change will not be disappointed. That is the only definite promise that I can make.”

The last question on a single candidate was whether there is a deadline or a time limit to reaching a single candidacy. To this Ahn replied, “I am not setting a time here. I am just saying that it is too early to discuss method”.

Ahn’s replies were vague and repetitive but they all seemed to flow in one direction, his insistence on willingness to discuss the issue only once there are changes in the country’s politics that are made with the consensus of the people.

Ahn some time ago criticized the current government by saying that he “opposed the ruling power’s political expansionism.” From this, one can assume that Ahn is more open to dialogue with the opposition than the ruling party. During the conference, a question of this nature was asked. Ahn did not answer directly but he neither denied preferring one side to the other.

In his remarks, Ahn repeatedly said he, “will not disappoint the people who want genuine change”. This was apparently a message directed to Moon Jae-in and the Democratic United Party.

In other words, if Moon and the DUP make clear political reforms and changes, he will not turn his back on the desire of the people for a single opposition candidate. Political commentator Kim Jong-bae said, “In saying that he will not disappoint the people, he means that he will accept the people’s desire for a single opposition candidate.”

From the words spoken and the messages insinuated, it looks as if the ball is back in Moon’s court. Naturally, both candidates will continue their election schedules; Moon will focus on reforming and innovating the DUP and Ahn will make his policies better known. In this manner, they will see if the conditions become right to discuss deciding on a single opposition candidate.

Once and if this happens, they can begin to discuss methods or a timeline. There are already people that say that Ahn’s message of not disappointing the people means that instead of competing, he will cooperate and join forces with Moon. The two may continue their in-person discussions to share ideas and develop synergy between them.

It will be also interesting to see how the three-way meeting proposed by Ahn to Park Geun-hye and Moon Jae-in will unfold. Moon is expected to readily accept the invitation in order to provide a firmer ground for cooperation with Ahn. But the question is Park will respond to all this.

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