'Opposing Disaster Basic Income' Jang Deokcheon, Mayor of Bucheon, Apologizes "My Fault"

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Mayor Jang Deok-cheon of Bucheon apologized for the social controversy sparked by his opposition to the 'disaster basic income.'

On the 26th, Mayor Jang posted an article titled 'Regarding Disaster Basic Income' on Facebook, stating, "It seems that my post about Gyeonggi-do's disaster basic income caused a lot of confusion," and added, "I believe that we should not continue undesirable debates when we are busy responding to COVID-19 and the worsening economic situation."

He further said, "Every policy has pros and cons, and I agree that welfare policies should be implemented universally," and "Generally, selective welfare requires significant costs and time to select beneficiaries, and in that regard, I also agree that universal welfare is better for policies requiring urgency in disaster situations," expressing sympathy for the basic intent of the disaster basic income.

He also added, "Gyeonggi-do's disaster basic income, which gives a fixed amount to all residents, is a meaningful policy," explaining, "This is because it is the fastest possible response policy."

Mayor Jang expressed expectations, saying, "By setting the validity period of the distributed money to three months, it will surely be consumed within that period, which will have a clear effect of quickly stimulating the economy."

Furthermore, he said, "Considering the need for policies that fill gaps among the government, metropolitan governments, and local governments, the function of Gyeonggi-do's disaster basic income can have even greater significance," and praised it highly, saying, "At the same time, Gyeonggi-do's disaster basic income also means that Korea is implementing the most typical form of universal welfare, basic income, for the first time."

In particular, he apologized, saying, "Because I emphasized my opinion, the comparison of pros and cons between Gyeonggi-do's disaster basic income and my opinion was omitted, but as I mentioned above, the meaning of the disaster basic income policy itself is very significant," and "By expressing my opinion externally, which I wished had been raised internally beforehand, policies that require speed were affected, causing delays in measures, which is undesirable and my fault."

Finally, Mayor Jang emphasized the prompt implementation of the disaster basic income, saying, "Gyeonggi-do's disaster basic income is one of the policies I support," and "The economy is in a very difficult time, and it is most important to prepare for the policy to be implemented quickly and for its effects to appear rapidly."

Earlier, on the 24th, he posted on his Twitter, "The reason for giving basic income is to increase consumption and thereby increase sales for small business owners, but as long as COVID-19 continues, consumption patterns will not change," and claimed, "Places that are doing well will continue to do well, and places that are not will continue to struggle."

He continued, "If 1 million KRW is given to 870,000 people in Bucheon, it costs 87 billion KRW, but I think it is better to give 4 million KRW each to 20,000 small business owners who are struggling rather than doing it this way," expressing opposition to Gyeonggi-do's disaster basic income policy.

Meanwhile, Gyeonggi-do Governor Lee Jae-myung will appear as a panel supporting the disaster basic income on MBC's '100 Minutes Talk' at 11:05 p.m. on the 26th. Governor Lee held a press conference on the 24th and announced that as an emergency economic measure due to COVID-19, 10 million KRW per person in local currency will be distributed to all 13.26 million residents of Gyeonggi-do starting April 1.

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