With "False Explanation of Bombju Dinner"... Yoon "Never Said I Didn't Drink"

Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Seoyoung] The Democratic Party of Korea demanded an apology from Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, accusing him of making false explanations regarding the so-called 'Mokpo Bombakju Dinner.'

On the 21st, the Democratic Party's campaign task force for current issues stated in a press release, "A video presented by the campaign headquarters revealed a scene of candidate Yoon drinking bombakju, proving that the candidate's side's explanation was false, yet they have not even apologized," expressing this view.

The task force pointed out that the receipt presented as evidence by Yoon's side, claiming that the candidate's portion was paid before the dinner ended, shows a payment time 11 minutes later than the receipt of the former Mokpo City Council chairman. They urged Yoon's side to clarify the facts regarding whether bombakju was consumed, the payment of the dinner cost, the payer and the timing of the payment, and the basis for the calculation of the 77,000 won cost.

Kim Byung-gi, head of the task force, said, "We request the National Election Commission and investigative agencies to promptly investigate and clarify the facts regarding candidate Yoon's alleged violation of election laws," and criticized, "Yoon's campaign, which is a gathering place for former prosecutors of a major law firm level, should not mislead public opinion by making groundless claims about Yoon's alleged election law violation of eating and drinking without paying."

Earlier, after paying respects at the Gwangju 5·18 Democratic Cemetery on the 10th, candidate Yoon reportedly moved to Mokpo and had dinner with about 10 local politicians at a sashimi restaurant, enjoying the local specialty minohoe (croaker sashimi). In response, the Democratic Party's campaign headquarters released a video showing Yoon drinking bombakju and filed a complaint with the prosecution accusing Yoon of eating and drinking without paying and violating election laws, citing that the former Mokpo City Council chairman paid the meal cost.

In response, Lee Yang-su, chief spokesperson of the People Power Party, said at a meeting with reporters on the afternoon of the 21st, "There is no one on our side who said that (candidate Yoon) did not drink bombakju." This means that while it is true that Yoon drank alcohol on the 10th, there was no statement denying it, so there was no false explanation.

Lee also explained regarding the meal payment, "Before the meal, I told Chairman Lee Kwang-rae, who paid first, that we would pay separately for candidate Yoon's portion, so please exclude it and calculate it later." He emphasized that there was no problem with the meal payment, saying, "Chairman Lee paid for the others, and the chief of staff paid 77,000 won in cash including VAT and received the receipt," adding, "We even asked to write 'candidate' on the receipt."

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