Opposition, on Kim Hye-kyung's Apology: "Full of Bogus Lies... This is How Secret Power Brokers Are Born"

Kim Hye-kyung "Should have distinguished between public and private work... Everything is my fault" Apology
People Power Party "This is exactly how secret power brokers are born"

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, visited the Andong Kim Clan Hwasuhoe in Andong City, Gyeongbuk, with his wife Kim Hye-kyung on the 1st, the Lunar New Year holiday, and is taking a commemorative photo. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] The People Power Party strongly criticized Kim Hye-kyung, spouse of Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, calling the allegations of misuse of public officials for personal purposes and excessive protocol "a bunch of nonsense lies."

Previously, Bae, a former level 5 special-appointed public official who accompanied the candidate and his spouse during Lee's tenure as governor of Gyeonggi Province, issued a statement through the Democratic Party's election committee on the 2nd, apologizing by saying, "No one asked me to do anything for Ms. A," and "I mistakenly thought that knowing the candidate for a long time was a privilege, and I made unreasonable demands to gain favor with the candidate and his spouse."

Kim also bowed her head in an official statement, saying, "Everything is my fault. I should have clearly distinguished between public and private matters, but I received help due to my friendship with Mr. Bae. However, I did not receive constant assistance," and added, "Once again, I apologize to the public for causing concern."

In response, Lee Yang-su, chief spokesperson of the People Power Party's election headquarters, sharply criticized in a commentary, saying, "This is exactly how unelected power brokers are born."

Regarding Bae's apology, the chief spokesperson said, "(Bae) claimed everything was due to his excessive loyalty. But it was nothing but a bunch of nonsense lies with not a single credible part," and questioned, "If it was medicine he needed, why was it delivered to Kim Hye-kyung's house? Is he indirectly confessing to the public that he lived and ate at Kim Hye-kyung's house, acting as a butler?"

The chief spokesperson continued, "If he ordered food on his own, does that mean a Gyeonggi Province public official bought and delivered food that Kim Hye-kyung did not order and she ate it?" and pointed out, "If so, wouldn't it have been proper for Kim Hye-kyung, as a decent person, to have instructed that such things never happen again?"

He further criticized, "If someone came to Kim Hye-kyung's house to organize the refrigerator and wardrobe, was she just watching? Or is Bae Sohyun planning to claim ignorance by saying she had the password and handled things during Kim Hye-kyung's absence?"

The chief spokesperson also said, "No matter how much candidate Lee Jae-myung tries to endure by covering up all sorts of suspicions such as Daejang-dong, Seongnam FC sponsorship funds, lawyer fee payments, insults to his sister-in-law, and defending a murderer, everything seems to be collapsing because of this incident," and criticized, "If they were not treating the public like fools, why would they think of hiding behind Bae with such absurd false explanations?"

Regarding Kim's apology, he said, "She said she could not clearly distinguish between public and private matters and received help due to friendship, but it is fatal for a public official's spouse not to distinguish between public and private," and fiercely criticized, "Hearing the explanation that she casually accepted a public official taking care of household chores is even more outrageous."

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