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Grand National Party presidential frontrunner Lee Myung-bak on Sunday accused Cheong Wa Dae of involvement in a ¡°smear campaign¡± against him. "It seems that somebody in Cheong Wa Dae is involved, considering that a pro-Roh Moo-hyun group keeps accusing me using information inaccessible even to parliamentarians,¡± he said. ¡°I won't say it is Roh Moo-hyun, but I can say with certainty it is someone in the presidential office.¡±
In an exclusive interview with the Chosun Ilbo, Lee warned he will not sit idle if President Roh keeps acting in the belief that the ruling camp will retain power if it beats Lee. ¡°Regardless whether I become president, we face a crisis threatening the national identity and economy," Lee said. "And in such a crisis, it will be necessary for the people who wish for a transition of power and the GNP to join hands to deal with it. I hope I won't be in a position to make that crucial decision. But if such a situation arises..."
Asked if he believes the camp of his GNP rival Park Geun-hye involved in the ruling camp's political maneuvers, Lee said, "I don't want to say that they¡¯re cooperating with each other. But I believe that her camp may have been tipped off by the ruling camp.¡± Park¡¯s camp has accused Lee of involvement in a firm whose CEO is now jailed in the U.S. awaiting trial on embezzlement charges; it has also, Lee said, attacked his plan for a cross-country canal ¡°based on the same data¡± as those of the ruling camp. ¡°So I believe they at least shared information."
As for accusations that Lee is worth W800 billion (US$1=W938) held in the names of relatives, he said, "If the party credentials committee needs, I think it would be good to cooperate with the committee with the help¡± of his relatives. The former Seoul mayor also denied that he has a plot of land in Okcheon, North Chungcheong Province and a property in Yangjae-dong, Seoul in his brother-in-law's name. "I could have used his name from the beginning if I¡¯d wanted to, instead of registering the properties in my own name first and handing them over to my brother-in-law later."
Lee said he competed with Park over the past 10 months in the popularity ratings. Now the gap is closing, but he expressed confidence that they will return to what they were. ¡°I'm more interested in what moves the opponents of the GNP, including the Roh Moo-hyun government and [North Korean leader] Kim Jong-il, will make once a coalition of groups within the ruling camp produces a single, unified presidential candidate."
The candidate promised to present his own economic policy pledges during the election campaigning. ¡°What course of action businessmen will take will be determined largely by whether I become president, or whether I create a new brand as president,¡± Lee said.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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