Nationwide Disaster Relief Fund Ignites Heated Debate... Lee Jae-myung vs. Jeong Sye-gyun Face Off

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jin-young] The Democratic Party of Korea has been actively promoting nationwide disaster relief payments day after day. Lee Nak-yeon, the party leader and a leading presidential candidate, hinted at the possibility of payments in a media interview, while Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, boldly proposed a specific method of distributing the payments via local currency. Meanwhile, Lee and Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun engaged in a ‘showdown’ targeting each other.

The Democratic Party considers the selectively distributed third round of disaster relief payments insufficient to invigorate the overall economy and is contemplating a fourth round of disaster relief payments to be universally distributed to all citizens. In an interview with KBS on the 4th, Lee Nak-yeon stated, “Once COVID-19 subsides, we can also consider a nationwide disaster relief payment plan,” adding, “The appropriate timing for payment is when the spread slows down.” Lee Jae-myung, who has consistently advocated for universal support, on the same day personally delivered a letter to ruling and opposition lawmakers and Deputy Prime Minister for Economy Hong Nam-ki urging the distribution of relief payments.

Lee Nak-yeon, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 8th and delivering an opening remark. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

However, Chief Spokesperson Choi In-ho met with reporters after the Supreme Council meeting at the National Assembly on the morning of the 8th and cautioned against overinterpretation, saying, “What is important now is to curb the spread of COVID-19 and to implement support measures for the groups most affected,” and “It is not yet time for a full public discussion on nationwide disaster relief payments based on the premise that COVID-19 has subsided.”

Nevertheless, there appears to be some consensus within the party on the direction of universal payments. Chief Spokesperson Choi added, “There is generally a consensus that universal disaster relief payments have had economic effects.” Yang Hyang-ja, a Supreme Council member, also explained in an interview on KBS Radio’s ‘Kim Kyung-rae’s Strong Current Affairs’ on the 8th, “I mentioned this in closed meetings of the party leadership, and everyone agrees.” At the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly that morning, Yang also urged, “We demand the normalization of the permanent consultative body between the ruling and opposition parties. Let’s discuss nationwide disaster relief payments there.”

[Image source=Yonhap News]

As discussions began to heat up, on the previous day (the 7th), Governor Lee and Prime Minister Chung engaged in a public exchange targeting each other. When Lee referred to Prime Minister Chung’s media interview on Facebook and said, “The next disaster relief payment should be given to all citizens in local currency,” Prime Minister Chung responded in a post titled “In response to Governor Lee’s remarks,” saying, “Let’s move beyond simplistic debates like ‘expand the budget more’ or ‘less.’”

In response, Governor Lee quoted from a book by the late President Roh Moo-hyun, stating, “My gaze stopped at the part where he candidly recalled being ‘captured by bureaucrats,’” and countered, “Is there a more vivid account of government bureaucrats trapped in the myth of balanced budgets?”

The opposition party also criticized the plan as a ‘policy for next year’s by-elections.’ In addition, Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Jae-jung pointed out in an interview with YTN Radio’s ‘Hwang Bo-seon’s Starting New Morning’ on the same day, “It is nothing more than a logic that the state should do nothing every election.”

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