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Key Uri Party lawmakers continue to abandon the ruling party even after President Roh Moo-hyun on Friday appealed to the party to remain. The defectors include close comrades of the president. On Sunday, Rep. Chun Jung-bae, a founding member, announced his departure from the party, the fourth Uri lawmaker to leave after Im Jong-in, Lee Kye-ahn and Choi Jae-cheon. Lawmaker Yeom Dong-youn, the leader of a Roh faction based in the Jeolla provinces, plans to make his departure official Tuesday. With Yeom gone, the ruling party will have 134 seats in parliament, only seven more than the Grand National Party.
Chun told reporters dissolving the ruling party was necessary for political development, since Uri itself was the obstacle to the creation of a reform force dedicated to improving ordinary people¡¯s economic circumstances. The prominent legislator vowed to help set up a party integrating reform-minded forces. In 2002, Chun was the first to publicly endorse Roh as a presidential candidate for what was then the Millennium Democratic Party. He was a justice minister under Roh and the party¡¯s floor leader. Yeom was a Roh campaign aide in 2002.
More lawmakers are expected to desert the party after Monday¡¯s central committee meeting, which is to discuss a revision of the party constitution to facilitate an early national convention.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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