Lee Jae-myung and Yoon Seok-yeol, Their Ways to Overcome 'Adversities'

Lee Jae-myung Responds with 'Quick Apology'... Frequent Apologies Cited as Lack of Sincerity
Yoon Seok-youl Shows 'Caution'... Critic Says "Political Aspects More Important Than Facts"

On the afternoon of the 3rd, at the KBS Open Hall in Yeouido, Seoul, during the joint invitation '2022 Presidential Candidate Debate' hosted by the three major broadcasters, Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate (left), is returning to his seat after a commemorative photo session. On the right is Yoon Seok-youl, the People Power Party presidential candidate. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Boryeong] On the 3rd, Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party of Korea's presidential candidate, issued an apology regarding the 'excessive protocol' surrounding his spouse Kim Hye-kyung. This came six days after the first report. On the same day, Yoon Seok-youl, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, apologized to victim Kim Ji-eun, who was hurt by remarks related to 'Ahn Hee-jung' made by his spouse Kim Gun-hee. This was two weeks after the incident surfaced. As the presidential election approaches in about a month, the 'response methods' of the ruling and opposition candidates to their respective scandals are contrasting. Political commentators viewed Lee’s 'quick apology' positively but pointed out its 'lightness,' while they criticized Yoon for not abandoning his lawyer-like tendency to focus on 'fact-based' aspects.

In a statement on the 3rd, Lee said, "I apologize for causing concern due to the actions of an employee during my tenure in Gyeonggi Province," adding, "As governor, I failed to thoroughly check for any improper conduct by employees, and my spouse also failed to detect and preemptively block potentially problematic actions." This apology relates to allegations from a former provincial office secretary that Bae Mo, a clerk in the General Affairs Division of the provincial office during Lee’s governorship, gave improper orders such as proxy prescription and receipt of medicine and food delivery for Kim Hye-kyung, and suspicions that Kim used the Gyeonggi Province corporate card through so-called 'card kkang' methods to purchase beef and sushi. Kim Hye-kyung also responded swiftly. On the 2nd, a day earlier than Lee, she said, "Everything is my fault," and "I apologize for causing concern to the public."

This is not the first time Lee has issued a quick apology. When an article about his eldest son’s illegal gambling and prostitution allegations was published in December last year, Lee released a statement that morning saying, "I bow my head and apologize as a father along with my son to those who were disappointed by my son’s disgraceful behavior," and "I will ensure this never happens again and that he receives treatment." This is seen as reflecting past experiences where ambiguous remarks during explanations about defending a nephew had only fueled controversy.

On the other hand, Yoon has shown a pattern of prioritizing 'fact-checking' before carefully apologizing himself when scandals arise. During a TV debate the previous day, when Sim Sang-jung, the Justice Party presidential candidate, asked, "Do you have the courage to apologize here to victim Kim Ji-eun, who is suffering due to the release of the recorded conversation?" Yoon replied, "To those who have been hurt, including Kim Ji-eun, I will apologize, as the spouse of a public figure also holds a public position." Kim Gun-hee had caused controversy by making remarks in the '7-hour phone call' released on the 16th of last month, saying, "Ahn Hee-jung is pitiful. I and my husband (Yoon Seok-youl) are on Ahn Hee-jung’s side," seemingly defending former Chungnam Governor Ahn Hee-jung over victim Kim Ji-eun in the sexual violence case.

Yoon also showed caution when apologizing for allegations of academic and career forgery involving Kim Gun-hee. At a meeting with reporters, Yoon said, "If you have someone close who is a university official, ask them how part-time lecturers are hired," adding, "They say it’s hiring corruption, but part-time lecturers are not hired based on such documents." He also said, "If the facts are clarified more accurately, I will offer a proper apology and admit those points. Apologizing without knowing the truth is somewhat inappropriate." However, as the controversy continued, he eventually held a scheduled day at the People Power Party headquarters and bowed his head with an official apology, saying, "I apologize to the public for causing concern due to controversies related to my wife."

Political commentators judged that quickly apologizing when an issue arises is better. Professor Shin Yul of Myongji University’s Department of Political Science and Diplomacy explained, "From a political engineering perspective, apologizing quickly is more effective," adding, "Lawyers like Yoon focus on facts, but politicians focus on public opinion. So when an issue arises, you have to apologize quickly to manage the situation first." However, regarding Lee, there are criticisms about frequent apologies and a seemingly insincere appearance. Um Kyung-young, director of the Era Spirit Research Institute, analyzed, "It’s good to apologize immediately, but overusing apologies is not good either," and "If you apologize once, it should be polite, with reflection and sincerity, so voters will pay attention, but apologizing too often inevitably raises doubts like 'Is this really an apology?'."

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