"Can't compromise"… Video of evaluation of Choo Mi-ae from 27 years ago resurfaces online
Amid controversy over Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae's comments about "fire department fiscal straws," evaluations left by fellow politicians 27 years ago are being resurfaced. A YouTube shorts reedited from a 1999 broadcast has garnered over 140,000 views just four days after being posted on the 20th, continuing to draw attention online.
The video contains assessments of then-first-term Rep. Choo Mi-ae by fellow politicians at the time. Former Rep. Jeong Han-yong said "She is not very good at compromise," and former Rep. Jeong Dong-young praised her temperament, saying "despite all obstacles to the end." The late former President Roh Moo-hyun, who was vice chairman at the time, is shown saying, "You need to know how to compromise and how to bend, but she boldly opposes and rushes forward against instructions or demands from superiors. This can be a disadvantage in politics." Comments in the video express reactions like "27 years have passed and nothing has changed."
Evaluations from political elder statesmen also resurfaced. Former National Assembly Secretary General Yoo In-tae revealed on CBS Radio's "Park Sung-tae's News Show" on the 21st an anecdote about Governor Choo visiting former President Roh Moo-hyun's Jeju vacation spot just four days after his election to discuss launching a new party, saying "the ink on the ballot hasn't even dried yet, how can you bring up such things now," and adding "even if there was such intention, this shows a complete failure to make common-sense situational judgments about timing and who the other party is."
Lee Jae-oh, standing committee advisor of People Power Party who appeared together, directly targeted the fire department comments. He said "spending more money and not having people die is better than spending less money and having people die—that's what government should do," and criticized that "politics is not being done for the people and nation, but as a style to enjoy power."
Governor Choo made controversy on the 13th by saying during the National Assembly's Administration and Safety Committee's state audit of Gyeonggi Province that "fire department is like the biggest troublesome fiscal straw," and offered an official apology six days later on the 19th. The next day, she held talks with the Korean Confederation of Public Sector Unions' Fire Department at the provincial government office to manage the situation. However, at the state audit on the 19th, fellow party member Rep. Bu Seung-chan repeated similar expressions, leaving the controversy unresolved.
The two elder statesmen agreed on the broadcast that today's politics has lost dialogue and compromise, focusing only on hardcore supporters. Former Secretary General Yoo said this: "How will the state turn out in a world where fighting roosters take the forefront?" This is why a personal assessment from 27 years ago has been brought up again.