[Yonhap Photo]
Former UN chief Ban Ki-moon let out a barrage of criticism and disappointment at South Korea's political circle as he renounced his presidential bid Wednesday.
"The cause that led me to spearhead the transfer of power was lost among malicious political defamation and fake news which I think are tantamount to a social murder," he said, adding his political run has only hurt his image. "As a result, I have only brought trouble to the people of South Korea."
South Korea could face an early presidential election as President Park Geun-hye was impeached in parliament in December last year for her role in a corruption scandal involving her arrested crony Choi Soon-sil. If the constitutional court confirms Park's impeachment, the presidential election should be carried out within two months.
Ban emerged as a powerful presidential candidate after he returned home triumphantly on January 12. However, he had to face political attacks and media criticism which he had never tasted before as a diplomat.
Just a few days after Ban staged his active political campaign, he reprimanded reporters as "bad people" for digging into his previous comments about "comfort women" sexually enslaved by Japan's imperial army during World War II.
He praised Park for making a resolute decision to solve a dispute with Japan over comfort women in 2016. However, many South Koreans criticized it as an unfair diplomatic concession. Details on the landmark agreement have been kept under wraps.
At his conference on Wednesday, Ban expressed frustration about South Korea's political situation. "I am so disappointed at the obsolete and selfish mindset of some politicians," he said, adding he would not walk the same political path as they did.
"To clear all problems we face, we all have to drop selfish thoughts," he said. "We all have to do what we can do in order to pass on the better future to our descendants."
With Ban out of the race, Moon Jae-in, a presidential candidate of the main opposition Democratic Party is now in the solid lead.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
