Lee Jae-myung "Even those who stole bread out of hunger serve prison time..." Opposes pardon for 'MB·Park'

Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Joo-hee] Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, who had remained silent on the pardon debate for former Presidents Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye, expressed opposition on the 12th, stating, "If someone has committed a wrongful act deserving punishment, it is only natural to bear the corresponding responsibility."

In an interview with KBS Radio's 'Joo Jin-woo Live' on the same day, Lee said, "If we forgive, people will think 'If you have power, you get away with everything,' making it difficult to achieve a deterrent effect."

Lee added, "Pardons and forgiveness should be granted when the person admits their wrongdoing and the public agrees to forgive. But if they show an attitude like 'I did nothing wrong, why are you blaming me?' and then are forgiven, what will happen to our society?"

He continued, "If someone has committed a wrongful act deserving punishment, it is only natural to bear the corresponding responsibility," emphasizing, "Even other thieves or people who steal bread out of hunger serve prison sentences. Why should those people have to live? From that perspective, fairness must also be fully considered."

He further added, "There must be a punitive effect, and the preventive effect to ensure such incidents do not happen again must also be fully considered."

Regarding the discussion on the 4th disaster relief fund payment, Lee directly criticized the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MOEF), which favors 'selective payment,' saying, "To put it bluntly, isn't it lazy?"

He said, "(Senior officials at MOEF) are stuck in an era when collecting money and investing in companies led to a virtuous economic cycle," and criticized, "I hope they study to keep up with the changed world."

He added, "For the economy to grow, demand must be increased, and the key way to increase demand is 'consumption.' Despite this, while countries worldwide accept rising national debt to support households and boost consumption, we alone are ignoring household debt and only focusing on the national debt ratio," he pointed out.

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