By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter
Presidential nominee Chung Dong-young of the United New Democratic Party (UNDP) Sunday pledged to achieve unity of the nation.
In a gesture for unity, he proposed that former Gyeonggi Governor Sohn Hak-kyu and former Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan co-lead his campaign headquarters, and both Sohn and Lee joined forces with Chung in a ceremony to launch the campaign headquarters in Suyuri, northern Seoul. The two unsuccessfully ran in the party's primary race in early October.
The inauguration of his campaign organization will likely fuel the competition with presidential candidate Lee Myung-bak of the conservative Grand National Party (GNP), party sources said.
The organization, which consists of 14 subcommittees, will help study electioneering strategies and promote campaign pledges, they added.
Party Chairman O Chung-il and Kim Geun-tae, adviser to the party, as well as Sohn and Lee will serve as co-leaders of the campaign headquarters.
The 2020 national vision subcommittees will work out pledges for various fields including foreign policies, the economy, education, welfare, national defense and culture.
Two special teams of the 14 panels will deal with Chung's signature campaign pledges to attain ``non-discriminatory development'' and make ``happy families,'' officials of the body said.
Under the catchphrase of ``non-discriminatory development,'' Chung has said that every one can enjoy benefits from the economic growth targeting Lee Myung-bak's business-friendly pledges.
Chung also said that both South and North Korea can achieve economic development through cooperation.
Citing that small and medium companies have offered more than 80 percent of jobs, he claimed the nation should give more benefits and subsidies to those firms for a take-off of the country.
The subcommittee for happy families will help Chung work out measures to ease regionalism and support the underprivileged, the officials said.
A day earlier, Chung promised to provide free treatment to people who are suffering from the four major illness including cancer and palsy, pointing out the current poor health services.
Due to mounting interest in on-line campaigning, another subcommittee will manage video footage, dubbed user-created contents (UCC), to promote his presidential pledges and give a more friendly image to Internet users, his aides said.