Lee Jae-myung: "Disaster Relief Funds Should Be Increased by 300,000 to 500,000 Won Per Person" Opposition Parties Criticize as "Vote-Buying Tactic"

Lee "Support scale relative to GDP is absurdly small" urges additional payments
Opposition "Taxes are not a honey jar to be picked like dried persimmons" criticizes

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, is being interviewed at a hotel in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do on the 29th of last month.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, mentioned on the 31st of last month that "an additional COVID-19 disaster relief fund of at least 300,000 to 500,000 KRW per person should be provided." The government had distributed 250,000 KRW per person to households in the bottom 88% income bracket last month, and Lee is now advocating for additional payments about a month later. The opposition criticized him, calling it a "money politics card" and "populism."

On the morning of the same day, after finishing a sports event with women in their 20s and 30s at Sangam Basketball Court in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, Lee told reporters, "I think it should be 1 million KRW per person, but currently about 480,000 to 500,000 KRW has been paid," and insisted that at least an additional 300,000 to 500,000 KRW should be provided.

He said, "The support amount relative to our country's GDP is only about 1.3%, which I think is not due to a lack of national capacity but rather a fiscal judgment error," adding, "I believe additional support is necessary to revive the economy, support economic difficulties caused by COVID-19, and revitalize local small businesses."

Regarding the timing and scale of the payments, he said, "The timing, method, and process are not something I handle; I am proposing this as a candidate of a party," and "the amount should be negotiated between the party and fiscal authorities."

Earlier, on the 29th of last month, at a step-by-step daily recovery review meeting held at the National Assembly, Lee also stated that "the scale of national support is not large compared to the damage suffered by all citizens," and announced plans to push for additional disaster relief payments.

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, is warming up before experiencing a netball game (a women-only sport created in the UK based on basketball) with women in their 20s and 30s at Sangam Basketball Court in Deogyang-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do on the morning of the 31st of last month.
Photo by Yonhap News

The opposition immediately responded with criticism, calling it "populism" and "vote-buying for elections."

Son Young-taek, spokesperson for former Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong, a presidential candidate of the People Power Party, issued a statement saying, "After Lee's approval ratings dropped due to the 'Daejang-dong Gate,' he pulled out the money politics card. This is the ultimate form of populist politics," and criticized, "Does he really not know how much burden indiscriminate cash handouts place on future generations?"

Sim Sang-jung, the Justice Party's presidential candidate, also said at the Justice Party National Committee, "Now is not the time for the ruling party's presidential candidate to offer consolation but to take responsibility. Disaster relief funds cannot be the ruling party's election strategy," and directly stated, "The people's taxes are not a honey pot for the ruling party to pick at according to political convenience."

She emphasized, "What is needed now is not disaster relief funds but the expansion of medical and public personnel, compensation for losses, sickness benefits, and the establishment of a public healthcare and quarantine system to successfully prepare for the With-COVID era."

Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, who oversees the government budget, has consistently expressed a negative stance on disaster relief payments considering fiscal soundness.

Regarding Lee's recent call for additional disaster relief payments, Hong avoided a direct answer on the 30th of last month (local time) while visiting Rome, Italy, to attend the G20 summit, saying, "I don't think it's appropriate to discuss that here in Rome."

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