Moon, Ahn to meet for alliance today
By Chung Min-uck
Moon Jae-in
Ahn Cheol-soo
Rep. Moon Jae-in, the presidential candidate of the main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP) and independent Ahn Cheol-soo agreed Monday to meet today to discuss the much-touted single candidacy for the liberal camp in the December election.
The first ever face-to-face meeting between the two liberal frontrunners will focus on political reforms, to lay the groundwork of the alliance, according to Jeong Yeon-soon, co-spokesman for Ahn.
Ahn made the proposal for starting the relevant talks during a lecture at Chonnam National University in the DUP’s stronghold city of Gwangju.
“Political reform” has been Ahn’s precondition for the much-protracted candidacy unification with Moon, along with “public consent.”
“We have to unite to achieve regime change and bring changes to people’s livelihoods,” said Ahn. “To this end, I believe my philosophy and Moon’s are the same.”
Ahn also laid out three principles for a successful alliance — an alliance “that can triumph over the power of vested right,” “that shares the same values and philosophy” and “that can change the future.”
Following the launch of the talks, experts say the opposition will gear up to declare a unified candidacy to defeat the standard-bearer of the ruling Saenuri Party, Park Geun-hye.
The opposition alliance issue has been making headlines in the lead up to the Dec. 19 election because many polls show either of the two candidates could beat Park if they agree on the terms of an alliance and avoid splitting the liberal vote.
The timing and methods of the merger will be a matter of concern for the two candidates, experts say.
“It is true that the long-time standoff between the two sides has reduced overall public interest in the liberal coalition,” said Yoon Hee-woong, a senior fellow of the polling agency the Korea Society Opinion Institute. “Now that they have agreed, the key is how and when the two sides can effectively forge an alliance without losing any of their supporters.”
It is expected that the liberals will come up with a single candidate before the presidential registration deadline on Nov. 25.
Moon and DUP lawmakers have repeatedly called on Ahn to agree that a single candidate should be fielded against the ruling Saenuri Party candidate. However, Ahn has shunned discussions on the issue sticking to his long-held position that the DUP should first reform itself.
Experts say Ahn’s sudden shift in position comes due to a recent fall in his approval rating.
Lately, the novice politician has come under fire for striking a populist note to woo voters without offering hands-on policies and intentionally wasting time to conduct opinion polls regarding the selection of a sole candidate from the liberal camp.
Opinion polls take less time compared to other selection methods including nation-wide primaries.
Ahn reportedly prefers opinion polls to such primaries in which Moon could have an advantage due to his party-based support.
The DUP candidate earlier said he won’t insist on any selection methods that favor him.
Meanwhile, the ruling Saenuri Party openly criticized its rival candidates’ move to launch an opposition alliance.
“I don’t understand how Ahn who has been calling for political reform suddenly changed position to launch an alliance with the DUP candidate who is the target of such reform,” said Ahn Byung-hwan, a spokesman for Park’s camp, Monday. “It is nothing but a move to beat the Saenuri candidate.”