President Roh Moo-hyun visited Mokpo on Thursday, which is former president Kim Dae-jung's political homeland. He went there to participate in a debate on development in South Jeolla Province. There was more political talk than policy talk, however, as the Jeolla provinces are no longer was warm to the president as they once were.

High ranking officials such as Jeong Chan-yong, presidential secretary, Cheong Wa Dae public information secretary Lee Byung-wan and Park Ki-young, assistant of Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information were also in the debate.

Roh said, "The public opinion protected me in hard times such as the impeachment." He added that, "They made me and the officials from this region lead to the government in the general election."

Also, the president noted, "The more you expect, the more you'll be disappointed and the deeper the love leads to deeper hate. I've heard that there is much disappointment with me in this region."

He said, however, "But I am not that worried because I see that they say, 'We supported him too much but he let us down' with 'We've got to criticize him in order to make him realize and does the work correctly.' "

He did not forget to mention the Democratic Party, "Two parties are competing with each other in this area but I expect both party supporters to get together when an important issue is to be decided. The Uri Party and Democratic Party exist separately but both of them hold the line of reform."

Once Roh once insisted in an press conference before the general election that the Democratic Party was anti-reform. "There are people who support me and do not support me. There are people who support me because they support reform and there are people who do not support me because they have a negative impression of reform or fear it," he said at that time.

In addition, "You people are in the birthplace of those forces that politically lead the nation, you launched those forces and made the president, the majority power of the assembly, the Millennium Democratic and Uri parties. You people are the pioneers of those forces that drive this nation's politics."

"At the political front line now, we are at a crossroads at which we must choose the path to the future or the way back to the Yushin system of old. The parties that pursued direction that were open, future-oriented and democratic were the Uri and Millennium Democratic parties."

"Please, gather diverse ideas so that the government will do something in great scale. I will prepare a basis for South Cholla Province to raise up its voice," added the president on the issue of developing a service sector in this region to make it specialized.

(englishnews@chosun.com )