Ruling Party: "Menopause medication was intended for secretary, not Kim Hye-kyung"… Opposition: "Absurd excuse"

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate (left), and his spouse Kim Hye-kyung. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] The Democratic Party's Election Countermeasures Committee (ECC) explained the suspicion of proxy prescription of medicine related to Kim Hye-kyung, spouse of Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party's presidential candidate, stating that "Secretary Bae took the medicine for her own menopausal symptom treatment."

The Democratic Party ECC's public relations team announced on the 3rd, "Ms. Bae had previously tried to conceive but was unsuccessful and was under severe stress," adding, "She showed menopausal symptoms such as irregular menstruation and depression, eventually giving up on pregnancy and taking hormone therapy for treatment."

They clarified that the person involved in the suspicion of proxy prescription and receipt of medicine is not Ms. Kim but Ms. Bae.

Earlier, Mr. A, a level 7 public official in the provincial government secretary office during Lee's tenure as Gyeonggi Province governor, revealed that he was instructed by Ms. Bae, a level 5 public official and close aide to Lee, to proxy-prescribe medicine for Ms. Kim.

On the previous day (the 2nd), Ms. Bae issued a statement saying, "Due to stress from late marriage and pregnancy, I secretly took hormone medicine," and admitted, "I acknowledge that I tried to obtain medicine prescribed to someone else for my own use."

Ha Tae-kyung, a member of the People Power Party, appeared on CBS Radio's Kim Hyun-jung News Show. / Photo by YouTube Capture

However, the People Power Party remains skeptical, calling it a forced excuse. On the 3rd, Rep. Ha Tae-kyung of the People Power Party appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and said, "The essence is the privatization of power," adding, "They privately used public officials. Ms. Bae is like a housekeeper."

He continued, "Looking at the name of the prescribed medicine, it was Livial, a menopausal treatment. Ms. Bae has been married only a few years (married in 2016), so the medicine is unrelated to her," and claimed, "They keep amplifying suspicion. It seems difficult to make excuses."

Won Il-hee, spokesperson for the People Power Party's election headquarters, also commented, "Mr. A sent a text saying he proxy-received 28 days' worth of medicine and delivered it to Lee Jae-myung's house," emphasizing, "If the ECC's announcement is true, Ms. Bae left medicine she was supposed to take at Lee's house and took it from there."

He added, "I don't understand how little they think of the public to expect us to believe such forced excuses. Since directly lying would violate election laws due to false information dissemination, it is reasonable to suspect that they fabricated the story as Ms. Bae claims and the ECC announced it on her behalf as a trick."

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