"Communication Channel" vs "Political Quarantine": Divergent Reactions from Ruling and Opposition Parties on Ki Moran's Appointment as Blue House Quarantine Officer

Gim Moran, Past Controversy Over "No Urgency for Vaccine" Remarks
Ruling Party: "Unnecessary Debate Does Not Help"
Opposition: "Prioritizing Politics Over Quarantine May Cause Confusion"

Professor Ki Moran of the National Cancer Center, appointed as the first Chief of Disease Control Planning at the Blue House.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] The ruling and opposition parties have shown mixed reactions regarding Professor Ki Moran of the National Cancer Center, who was appointed as the first Chief of Quarantine Planning at the Blue House. While the ruling party emphasized that the appointment was made to strengthen expertise in quarantine policies, the opposition party raised concerns about Professor Ki's past remarks and called for the withdrawal of the appointment.

Hong Youngpyo, a lawmaker who ran for the leadership of the Democratic Party of Korea, appeared on BBS Radio's 'Park Kyungsoo's Morning Journal' on the 19th and said, "It is not accurate that (Professor Ki) said 'the supply of COVID-19 vaccines should be delayed.'"

He explained, "Our country does not have the legal basis to import vaccines that have not received formal approval. Therefore, agencies like the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency were likely waiting to see if approval would be granted or if the likelihood of vaccine success would become more certain."

Additionally, Representative Hong pointed out, "Our country is one of the few in the world that can produce vaccines directly," and criticized, "Continuously turning this into an unnecessary debate does not help overcome the COVID crisis in any way."

Democratic Party lawmaker Kang Hoonshik also stated on KBS Radio's 'Choi Kyungyoung's Strong Current Affairs,' "(Professor Ki) has been widely recognized for her practical abilities," and added, "It should be highly regarded as it signifies the creation of a communication channel with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency."

Previously, in November last year, Professor Ki sparked controversy by stating on TBS Radio's 'Kim Eo-jun's News Factory' that "Korea is currently not in a rush to purchase vaccines based on the current level of patient cases."

Photo by TBS 'Kim Eo-jun's News Factory' YouTube screen capture.

On the other hand, the opposition expressed concerns that Professor Ki might cause confusion in quarantine efforts. Kwon Young-se, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, appeared on YTN Radio's 'Hwang Boseon's Starting New Morning' and criticized, "Professor Ki appeared on 'Kim Eo-jun's News Factory' and made political statements without any basis, claiming that the COVID spread was due to the Liberation Day rally, which is not medical science."

He continued, "She said vaccines were not urgent, but what is our current vaccine situation? Considering these points, I worry that Professor Ki might prioritize politics over quarantine and medicine, causing confusion and hindrance to quarantine efforts."

People Power Party spokesperson Bae Junyoung also released a statement saying, "Why appoint someone who disrupted quarantine efforts to the core of quarantine?" and added, "There are significant concerns in the medical community that this weakens the authority of Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency Director Jung Eunkyung and openly declares 'political quarantine.'"

Furthermore, the opposition claimed the appointment was a 'reward' by pointing out that Professor Ki's husband, Lee Jaeyoung, former president of the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, ran as a Democratic Party candidate in the Gyeongnam Yangsan Gap district in last year's general election but lost.

Yoon Heesook, a People Power Party lawmaker, wrote on her Facebook, "It is welcome that the Blue House has created the position of Chief of Quarantine Planning," but also questioned, "What kind of calculation is it to appoint such a person as the Chief of Quarantine Planning?"

She criticized Professor Ki, saying, "She repeatedly stated that securing vaccines was not important, misleading the general public during the height of the vaccine procurement battle, and because of this vaccine issue, experts criticized her for 'betraying her academic field to represent the regime.'"

She added, "Since it is the end of the regime, it seems that rewarding those who served the regime and were criticized is considered more important than calming the public's anger and restoring trust."

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