Mayor Kwon Young-jin Bows Amid 'Vaccine Arrangement Controversy'... Here Are the Facts (Comprehensive)

On the afternoon of the 8th, Kwon Young-jin, the mayor of Daegu, bowed his head and apologized in the Daegu City Hall situation room, taking full responsibility for the controversy surrounding the introduction of the Pfizer vaccine.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Ju Cheol-in] On the 8th, Kwon Young-jin, mayor of Daegu, officially apologized regarding the controversy over mediating the purchase of Pfizer vaccines, stating, "All mistakes and responsibilities lie entirely with me as the mayor." It has been 8 days since the controversy erupted.

Looking back on the vaccine introduction process that Mayor Kwon started with good intentions, it goes as follows.

At the beginning of this year, when the MedCity Daegu Council, a medical community group, first mentioned the possibility of introducing vaccines, Mayor Kwon reportedly said, "Please look into it once."

On April 28, the council proposed, "Since vaccines can be introduced from Germany, let's send a letter of intent to purchase on behalf of Daegu City."

Mayor Kwon later regretted, saying, "At that time, I did not examine it more carefully and instructed to consult with the Ministry of Health and Welfare."

After consulting with the Ministry of Health and Welfare, upon hearing from the council that they had discussed sending the letter of intent with Daegu City, the letter of intent in the name of the Daegu mayor was sent without verifying the facts or conducting additional consultations.

Subsequently, on May 31, at a press conference where Daegu City and medical representatives appealed for vaccination, when asked about the possibility of vaccine purchase at the local government level, Mayor Kwon stated, "We are independently pursuing the purchase of 30 million doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine through the council."

This led civic groups, the ruling party, and some politicians to demand clarification of the promotion process, escalating into a controversy over a "fake vaccine scam."

Eventually, on the 3rd, the Ministry of Health and Welfare stated, "The vaccine purchase proposal by Daegu City and the MedCity Council is not through official distribution channels and its authenticity is doubtful," and announced, "We have decided not to proceed with vaccine introduction."

Regarding the vaccine introduction budget raised by some, Mayor Kwon said, "There has been no execution of the budget at all."

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