Ahn Cheol-soo: "The Yeotjangsu Government's Populist Subsidies, Lee Jae-myung Received and Bet Even More"

[Photo by Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People Party, Facebook capture]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seoyoung Kwon] Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, raised his voice in criticism regarding the disaster relief fund payment policy.

Today (the 12th), Ahn posted on his Facebook a post titled "You Fool, the Problem Is the Collapse of the Middle Class." This is a variation of the slogan "You Fool, the Problem Is the Economy," which Bill Clinton used during the 1992 U.S. presidential election. Ahn said, "The 'Yeotjangsu government' increased the target recipients of the disaster relief fund from the bottom 88% income bracket to 90%," adding, "As expected, in the 'populism' gambling game using the people’s taxes as stakes, 'Tazza' Lee Jae-myung, governor of Gyeonggi Province, received the funds and is betting even more."

Ahn commented, "It seems Lee is trying to reignite the controversy over 100% disaster relief fund payment and use it as a fuse to justify his basic income pledge," and said, "He is completely mistaken." He pointed out, "The problem is not the number games of 88, 90, or 100," and asked, "Do you think the reason those who considered themselves middle class were shocked to be told they belong to the top 12% and are not eligible for the disaster relief fund is because they won’t receive 250,000 won?"

He continued, "The middle class is the backbone of our society. Just as in medicine, if the backbone collapses politically or economically, the whole body collapses and it becomes difficult to even walk," emphasizing this point. He added, "Many citizens are sending out distress signals," and criticized, "Due to the bogus economic theory of income-led growth, jobs have disappeared, the middle class is collapsing, and with skyrocketing real estate prices, even those with high incomes become 'lightning poor' if they don’t own a home."

Ahn said, "The reason those who were told they are not eligible for the disaster relief fund were shocked is because they realized that even if they have good jobs, they are classified as upper class," and added, "Disaster relief funds are literally meant to support those who have suffered disasters," and "Supporting those whose salaries have not changed or have even increased during a disaster means we should not even call it a disaster relief fund."

He also stressed, "Disaster relief funds should be used to help small business owners and self-employed people who are truly struggling," and "If the government and ruling party plan to provide disaster relief funds once more ahead of next year’s Lunar New Year and presidential election, they must focus on helping those who are really in need." Ahn concluded his post by saying, "The key issue of next year’s presidential election should be protecting and creating the middle class," and "The way to do that starts with preserving, sharing, and creating good jobs."

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