By Kang Hyun-kyung
Staff Reporter
A lawmaker, formerly a close aide of presidential contender Park Geun-hye of the Grand National Party, abandoned the former party chairwoman Thursday to support frontrunner contender Lee Myung-bak.
``It took several months for me to have a right answer to the question of who should be the next president. And finally I came to a conclusion that Lee is the perfect pick for the top job,'' Rep. Chun Yu-ok told reporters. She said she decided to stand by the former Seoul mayor in the presidential campaign.
Chun's joining Lee's camp met media frenzy, as she was one of the inner-circle members of the former party chairwoman, along with Reps. Kim Moo-sung and Yoo Seong-min.
Chun, who was elected to the National Assembly in 2004, was a loyal ally to Park when she led the GNP as party chairwoman.
Close aides of Park expressed a sense of betrayal and commented that Chun chose Lee to secure her parliamentary seat next year.
Park's camp said there are still many high-profile politicians who support Park. Two national associations for realtors said they support Park in the presidential campaign. According to the camp, the groups have 90,000 affiliated members.
There was another meaningful political event Wednesday that received media spotlight.
A daughter of the late President Park Chung-hee, Park held hands with Kim Hee-sook, the widow of the late journalist Jang Joon-ha.
Jang also served as a lawmaker of an opposition party during the Park Chung-hee government and led pro-democracy activities.
His corpse was found on a scorching summer day in 1975, after his family reported he was missing. No details of his cause of death were known.
Close aides of Lee Myung-bak commented that these events will not change the political landscape, which is now tilting in favor of Lee.
``Aides of Park used to repeat that `the day when Park wins the race is coming.' They have told the same old story on and on. As the primaries are near to come, they feel a sense of fret. The political events are no more than a reflection of their concerns,'' said Chin Soo-hee, a spokesperson of Lee.
She pointed out that Park's camp has prepared for the ceremonies to turn the public's attention away from the negative fallout of the political plot that they made.
Police investigation found that one of close aides of Park had become a bedfellow of the ruling camp by circulating the government-funded paper on the in-land canal project, and the latest ceremonies were designed to draw public attention from the negative impact of the smear politics, she said.