Cho Kuk, leader of the Rebuilding Korea Party, on the 11th accepted the Democratic Party of Korea's proposal to form a preparatory committee to pursue alliance and integration.
Cho said at an emergency supreme council meeting at the National Assembly that morning, "Last night I received from Democratic Party leader Jung Chung-rae the party's final position on alliance and integration," and stated accordingly. The Democratic Party held a supreme council meeting the day before and proposed forming a preparatory committee to pursue alliance and integration instead of continuing talks on a merger before the local elections.
Cho said, "The Rebuilding Korea Party agrees to the formation of a preparatory committee to pursue alliance and integration as proposed by the Democratic Party," adding, "Within this week we will convene a party affairs committee to ratify today's decision."
He added, "Going forward, preparations for alliance and integration between the two parties must be carried out in a direction that achieves firm goals such as the complete judgment of the insurrectionary forces, political reform including innovation in local politics, and the success of a popular sovereignty government," and said, "It must be not merely a combination and expansion of numbers but a combination and expansion of vision and values."
He continued, "Until before the phase of merger talks, the Innovation Party consistently called for a local election alliance for People Power Party zero and corruption zero," adding, "When a meeting between the two parties takes place, we must first confirm whether the alliance proposed by the Democratic Party is a local election alliance or an alliance as an abstract slogan."
He said, "Going forward, the alliance and integration of the two parties must be carried out in a direction that achieves firm goals such as the complete judgment of the insurrectionary forces, political reform including innovation in local politics, and the success of a popular sovereignty government," adding, "If (the alliance mentioned by the Democratic Party) is indeed a local election alliance, the preparatory committee will set the principles and methods of the local election alliance."
Regarding criticism the Rebuilding Korea Party received from some Democratic Party supporters during the merger talks, Cho said, "I accept the apology that Leader Jung Chung-rae expressed to Rebuilding Korea Party members," adding, "Our members suffered deep wounds from slander and insults directed at the party. This must never happen again."
He added, "As the ground hardens after rain, I hope alliance and unity between the two parties will be strengthened going forward," and said, "The Innovation Party will steadfastly walk the path of big-tent politics centered on representation, no matter the storms."