Park Won-soon Plan 'Emergency Disaster Living Expense Support', Over 70% of Seoul Citizens Support

80% of Respondents Say "It Will Help Citizens Struggling Due to COVID-19"
Support for 'Disaster Basic Income' Paid to All Citizens Stands at 29.4%

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] More than 70% of Seoul citizens support the "Emergency Disaster Living Expense Support" proposed by the Seoul Metropolitan Government as a measure to overcome the crisis caused by the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

Seoul announced the results on the 16th after conducting a random telephone interview survey of 1,000 Seoul citizens aged 18 and older through Global Research on the 12th and 13th.

Earlier, on the 10th, the city proposed the "Emergency Disaster Living Expense Support," under which the government would provide 300,000 KRW worth of gift certificates per month for two months, to be used by the end of May, to about 8 million households nationwide below the median income level who were not included in the government's supplementary budget support targets.

The reasons citizens who responded to the survey supported this proposal were ranked as follows: "Urgent relief for vulnerable groups affected by COVID-19 (39.7%)," "Need for measures to revitalize the domestic economy (30.7%)," and "Support needed for people vulnerable in crisis but left out of welfare safety nets (28.5%)."

Also, when asked which approach they sympathize with more between the "disaster basic income," which is paid to all citizens regardless of income or property size, and the emergency disaster living expense support proposed by Mayor Park Won-soon, which is paid to households below a certain income level, 61.5% of all respondents answered that they sympathize more with Mayor Park's proposal.

Only 29.4% responded that they sympathize more with the disaster basic income.

When asked whether the emergency disaster living expense support would help platform workers, daily workers, freelancers, and others whose livelihoods have become difficult due to COVID-19, 79.5% of respondents answered "It will help."

Regarding the amount of support, which is 300,000 KRW per household per month for two months, totaling 600,000 KRW, 67.3% responded that it is "appropriate," while 27.6% said it is "insufficient."

Through these survey results, Seoul reiterated the need to additionally reflect the emergency disaster living expense support in the government's supplementary budget and urged the National Assembly to expedite discussions on the supplementary budget so that emergency support funds can be promptly disbursed to citizens who have become financially strained due to COVID-19.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.