Generational change and separation surrounding ‘Roh Moo-hyun’s legacy’: The homework left behind by the conflict between Ryu Si-min and Kwak Sang-eon > News

The conflict began on the 12th when Rep. Kwak Sang-eon analyzed data on the operating status of the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation's official YouTube channel through his YouTube channel. Rep. Kwak pointed out that the overwhelming majority of videos posted on the foundation channel are filled with content from former Chairman Yoo Si-min or people directly or indirectly related to him. Specifically, he emphasized that 68% of the total video was related to former Chairman Yoo, reaching a whopping 76% based on running time, and raised the question of whether the original purpose of the foundation's establishment had been faded. He compared this to 'a bakery that only talks about the president's personal story instead of bread,' and delivered a strong message that the foundation's human and material resources should not be reduced to a promotional tool for a specific person.

Rep. Kwak's criticism went beyond simply the quantitative issue of the video and led to sharp doubts about how the foundation's public assets were being utilized. In particular, the live broadcast of former Chairman Yoo's book launch event, which was broadcast through the foundation channel last April, further fueled the controversy that the foundation, a public organization, was used as a private promotional channel. Rep. Kwak also raised uncertainty about how the foundation handles the revenue generated by its 1 million subscriber channel, emphasizing the need for fundamental structural improvement to ensure transparency and fairness in the foundation's operations. Ultimately, this is interpreted as a stern warning from the son-in-law that the foundation that honors former President Roh Moo-hyun's philosophy should not serve as a backdrop for personal political criticism or writing activities.

In response to these criticisms, former Chairman Yoo Si-min responded very quickly and decisively within three days. He officially requested to be dismissed from his position as a standing advisor through the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation website, and announced that he would also discontinue the 'Alileo Books' content that had been running through the foundation's YouTube channel as of the end of June. Former Chairman Yoo stated that he wanted to preemptively block the possibility that his future critical activities would cause unnecessary political burden or misunderstanding on the foundation. This can be interpreted as a move that reflects the will to prevent the spread of conflict and protect the organization from external attacks that the foundation may suffer due to the foundation.

The prevailing analysis is that this incident is not unrelated to former Chairman Yoo's 'ABC theory', which has recently been talked about in the political world. Former Chairman Yoo's criticism of the Democratic Party's supporters by dividing them into groups based on their characteristics clashed with Representative Lee Jae-myung's unifying move, creating a complex situation in which people inside and outside the party viewed him. Representative Lee Jae-myung also did not directly mention a specific person, but his emphasis on the role of the ruling party and his mention of 'big bowl' and 'inclusion' were interpreted as indirect criticism of former Chairman Yoo's criticism method. As a result, in this political context, Rep. Kwak Sang-eon's raising of the issue coincided with the timing, creating an environment in which former Chairman Yoo had no choice but to break away from the safety net of the foundation and take independent action.