'Private Errands' by Gyeonggi-do Official, Errands for Lee's Wife and Even Eldest Son?... Additional Reports

Kim Hye-kyung, wife of Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Seoyoung Kwon] Allegations have been raised that a public official affiliated with the Gyeonggi Provincial Government, during Lee Jae-myung's tenure as governor of Gyeonggi Province, carried out personal errands not only for Lee's wife Kim Hye-kyung but also for his eldest son.

On the 29th, TV Chosun reported additional suspicions of 'private use of public officials' involving Lee's family, citing claims from Mr. A, who worked in the Gyeonggi Provincial Government's secretariat last year. According to the report, in June of last year, Mr. A, under the direction of Mr. Bae from the General Affairs Division of the Gyeonggi Provincial Government, visited a general hospital in Goyang to run a personal errand.

Mr. A claimed that he received the resident registration card of Lee's eldest son, who had already been discharged from the hospital, completed the discharge procedures on his behalf, and collected the prescribed medication. It was reported that the discharge documents listed the eldest son's name in the patient section and the names of Lee and his wife in the family section.

Previously, Mr. A had stirred controversy by claiming that he was mobilized for personal errands for Lee's wife Kim while working in the secretariat. On the 28th, SBS reported Mr. A's claim that "over 90% of my work involved trivial errands related to Ms. Kim." However, there has been no confirmation that Ms. Kim directly or through Mr. Bae instructed Mr. A to run these errands.

Meanwhile, Mr. Bae issued a statement through the Democratic Party's election campaign committee on the same day as the controversy arose. In a text message distributed to the media, Mr. Bae denied the allegations, stating, "I have never handled private matters for the candidate's family during the performance of my official duties," and added, "There are many attempts to interfere in the election by spreading false information. I will not stand idly by."

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