Song Young-gil on 'Kim Hye-kyung's misuse of corporate card' question: "Kim Gun-hee is a bigger issue... Proper investigation first"

Suspicion of Private Use of Corporate Card by Lee Jae-myung's Wife Kim Hye-kyung
"Proper Investigation Should Start with Kim Geon-hee" Avoids Direct Answer
"Lee Jae-myung Is Open to Accepting Kim Jong-in's Message"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] Song Young-gil, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, avoided giving a direct answer regarding the controversy surrounding Kim Hye-kyung, stating that Kim Geon-hee, wife of Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, is "more problematic."

In an interview on KBS Radio's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strongest Current Affairs' on the 3rd, Song was asked, "There is evidence that Kim Hye-kyung used the Gyeonggi Province Secretary Office's corporate card for personal purposes, and the People Power Party claims an investigation is necessary." He responded, "It would be better to properly investigate Kim Geon-hee first."

Song said, "How can the wife of the Prosecutor General speak informally, saying 'Take it there' to a sitting chief prosecutor?" He added, "Kim Geon-hee is a private individual. Even if she were the Prosecutor General's wife, it would be problematic, but does a wife, who is not in the chain of command with a sitting chief prosecutor, make private calls? This proves that Kim Geon-hee plays a substantial role beyond just delivering messages." Song also mentioned, "Everything is implied in the phrase 'If I catch [them].'"

According to KBS on the 2nd, in April last year when candidate Lee was governor of Gyeonggi Province, Bae, a grade 5 public official in the General Affairs Division of the provincial office, instructed A, a grade 7 public official in the Secretary Office, to "order four packs of beef tenderloin at a meat restaurant, remove the price tags, wrap them, and put them in an icebox," and to deliver them to Lee's residence in 'Sunae-dong.'

In June last year, Bae also instructed A via Telegram and phone calls, saying, "Three salads and sushi rice bowls for tomorrow afternoon," and "The madam asked to have sushi delivered tomorrow." When A purchased items on errands for Kim, he usually paid first with his personal card and later revisited the establishments during lunch hours when he could freely use the corporate card to switch cards and make a re-payment. Recordings of calls between the two from March to November last year include more than ten instances of switching cards for payment. In June last year, Bae instructed A to handle the hospital discharge procedures for Lee's son. He also sent A on errands to pay hospital bills using a welfare card issued in Lee's name by the provincial office and the son's ID card.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, the Democratic Party maintains the position that this incident stemmed from Bae's personal misconduct and excessive loyalty. The Democratic Party's election campaign public relations team released a message stating, "Bae had previously tried to conceive but was unsuccessful and was under severe stress."

Meanwhile, Song once again extended a love call regarding former People Power Party general election campaign committee chairman Kim Jong-in, saying, "Candidate Lee Jae-myung has a mindset that can accept messages from former Chairman Kim." He evaluated, "Former Chairman Kim is someone who has crossed party lines. The reason he has maintained influence while moving between parties is not simply because he chased power back and forth, but because he had his own agenda, such as economic democratization."

He continued, "I argued that (candidate Yoon) can use former Chairman Kim temporarily for the election, but after it ends, he will be discarded. Former Chairman Kim created the economic democratization clause in our country's constitution. The candidate who can accept such a concept is candidate Lee," he emphasized.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

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