Presidential aide bets against Ahn’s bid

Ahn Cheol-soo

Was it wishful thinking or a conclusion made on the basis of facts?

A Cheong Wa Dae official voiced a pessimistic view, Thursday, on the prospects of Ahn Cheol-soo running in the presidential race.

This came amid campaign watchers being divided over whether he will declare a bid to become president or not. The wait shouldn’t be long as Ahn plans to stop his equivocation and state whether he will run in the Dec. 19 presidential election.

The official told reporters on condition of anonymity that he believed Ahn, a popular Seoul National University professor, might have been discouraged from running as recent polls show that his ratings were on a downward turn.

“Once the support trend goes down, it’s difficult for him to narrow the gap with a frontrunner. I believe Ahn probably knows this,” he said. “Plus the younger generation prefer people who are clear. Having said that, I think the point is who he will support.”

The official’s remarks came amid rampant speculation that Ahn may make his presidential bid public sometime next week, and then possibly compete with the winner of the Democratic United Party (DUP) primary to select a standard bearer of the opposition camp.

Earlier Yoo Min-young, a spokesman of Ahn, said the founder of the computer virus vaccine provider AhnLab would announce his decision a couple of days after the DUP primary.

The DUP is scheduled to pick the winner of nationwide primaries this Sunday. If Rep. Moon Jae-in, a frontrunner, garners 50 percent or more total support, he will be chosen as a DUP candidate. His overall tally so far stands at 50.8 percent.

Depending on the DUP primary results, Ahn could announce his decision next week or a week later.

Unlike the Cheong Wa Dae official, many campaign watchers remain optimistic about Ahn’s presidential bid.

Je Jeong-im, a professor of Semyung University Graduate School of Journalism, told The Korea Times that he will follow his heart.

Je, who wrote the book, “Ahn Cheol-soo’s Thoughts,” after interviewing him, said reading between the lines of Ahn’s remarks indicates this.

“He said he would make his decision public after the DUP primary. I think this sent the message that he would run in the election,” she said.

The journalist-turned-professor said she saw Ahn in late July after the book was released. “We didn’t talk much about politics as he hated such conversations. We talked a lot about our families and how we’ve done so far,” she said.

Before the July meeting, Prof. Je met Ahn nine times for the book project. The meetings took place between May and June. She asked Ahn to give his positions on major issues and wrote the book based on his answers.

Kyung Hee University Professor Kim Min-jeon, who met Ahn over lunch recently, also said that she sensed he was seriously considering a presidential bid.

In an interview, Kim quoted Ahn as having said that his acquaintances feel positive about him as next president but he was not sure if he could handle the job well.

“I felt that he toured the country because he was interested in running in the presidential race,” she said. <The Korea Times/Kang Hyun-kyung, Ryu Chang-gi>

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