Democratic Party lawmaker Ko Min-jung has appealed to the party's hardline supporters to hold back their criticism of President Lee Jae-myung and instead lend him their support.
Ko, who served as presidential spokesperson under the Moon Jae-in administration and is seen as belonging to the party's pro-Moon faction, wrote on social media on the 22nd that Lee had spoken by phone with former President Moon Jae-in the previous day. "The presidency I watched up close was not a seat that enjoys every power, but the loneliest seat of all," Ko said.
"There will be all kinds of views on the issues at hand, but I hope we can all lend a shoulder so that the president does not become lonely and so that the Republic of Korea is not put at risk," Ko said.
Earlier, Kim Young-jin, regarded as one of Lee's earliest allies, made a similar point in a radio interview with SBS (034120) on the 17th. "The ruling party needs a principle of not snatching away the umbrella when it rains, but of getting wet together and then sharing the umbrella to overcome the difficulties," Kim said. Kim has also said that hardliners within the party and Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae, who objected to the nomination of Kim Ji-yong as head of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, should refrain from excessive criticism and throw their weight behind the president.
