Kwon Young-jin "For the Government" vs Jeong Cheong-rae "To Harm (危害) the Government"

Jeong Cheong-rae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the Education Committee plenary meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on April 21. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Soyoung] Jeong Cheong-rae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, expressed a sharp stance regarding Daegu Mayor Kwon Young-jin's apology over the controversy surrounding the mediation of Pfizer vaccine purchases, saying, "What are you saying now that you acted in good faith for the government?"

On the 8th, Jeong posted on his Facebook, "Apologize honestly and straightforwardly. It was not done for the government, but you tried to (cause harm) to the government," criticizing the mayor.

He posted an article titled "Does this person even apologize with lies?" and pointed out, "Wasn't the real intention to awkwardly stand out by claiming that the Moon Jae-in administration's quarantine system was incompetent or that the vaccine policy was a mess?"

He added, "Politicians fall in one shot when caught in the trap of facts, intentions, and attitudes," and criticized, "The Daegu mayor fell into the trap of incorrect facts, dark intentions, and poor attitude."

He urged, "Why can't you be honest even when apologizing? A sincere apology starts from honesty. Apologize again."

On the afternoon of the 8th, Kwon Young-jin, the mayor of Daegu, is officially apologizing at Daegu City Hall regarding the controversy over arranging the purchase of Pfizer vaccines.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, Daegu City declared it would introduce 30 million doses of Pfizer vaccines in cooperation with the private sector, but later the Ministry of Health and Welfare judged that "the vaccine purchase proposed by Daegu City and the MedCity Daegu Council is not an official distribution channel and its authenticity is doubtful," leading to the cancellation of the introduction plan.

Mayor Kwon held a press conference on the 8th and bowed his head, saying, "What started in good faith to help the government's vaccine purchase caused social criticism and political controversy, bringing great repercussions to our society."

He stated, "It was my negligence that caused the issue to escalate from a simple vaccine introduction failure case to a 'fake vaccine scam' controversy."

He apologized, saying, "Due to my imprudent words and actions, the image of Daegu was damaged, and deep wounds and disappointment were caused to citizens suffering from COVID-19. All the fault for this controversy lies with me as the mayor. I earnestly ask that criticism toward Daegu citizens and the local medical community be stopped."

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