Ruling and Opposition Presidential Candidates Emphasize Solidarity... Lee "Listening to the Lowly," Yoon "Opportunities for the Needy"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] The presidential candidates of the two major parties simultaneously emphasized messages of solidarity and coexistence. Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, promised, "I will always listen to the voices of ordinary people appealing from the grassroots," while Yoon Seok-youl, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, pledged, "I will give opportunities to those in need."

On the 27th, Candidate Lee introduced the case of a young man featured in a media report on his Facebook, saying, "I will always listen to the voices of ordinary people appealing from the grassroots." The story was about a young man who was sentenced to prison because he could not pay hospital bills for his father, who was battling a cerebral hemorrhage, leading to his death.

Lee explained, "The life of Kang Do-young fully reflects the problems our society must solve," adding, "Issues such as the inheritance of poverty, the caregiving structure where a family collapses if one member falls ill, and the problem of youth giving up their dreams and future because of this."

He then promised to elevate the 'Gyeonggi-do Emergency Welfare Medical Expense Support System,' which he implemented as governor of Gyeonggi Province, to the national level by including caregiving expenses in disaster medical costs and increasing the payment amount to 50 million won. He also pledged to find ways to improve medical welfare systems, such as enhancing the 'Out-of-Pocket Expense Cap System' to allow pre-settlement before discharge.

Candidate Lee vowed to strengthen medical and welfare systems to ensure that illness does not lead to poverty, and poverty does not lead to death.

On the same day, Candidate Yoon also emphasized the power of solidarity through Facebook. He shared news about an online cafe community participating in a so-called 'Donjjulnae-gi' (supporting a good business by purchasing its goods) for a store owner who had to close his business after his wife was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer. He said, "Righteous 'Donjjulnae-gi'?that spirit is the path our politics should take."

He also introduced a case where a man lacking money asked a pizza shop owner to allow him to buy a pizza on credit for his daughter's birthday, and the owner gladly left a note saying to contact him anytime along with the pizza, calling them "truly righteous citizens."

He stated, "With the warm spirit of solidarity among our people who want to give opportunities to those in need and help each other, I will make our politics more humane and just."

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