People Power Party: "Lee Jae-myung Promised 35 Trillion Won, Now 16 Trillion Won 'Vote-Buying Supplementary Budget' Deceiving the People Again"

"Why Can't It Be Paid Now When They Said Additional Payments Would Be Made After the 18th?"
Small Business Owners and Self-Employed Respond: Must We Wait Until March 9?

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, is greeting supporters after finishing a speech appealing for support at the 'JM is Gangnam Style!' election rally held near Gangnam Station in Gangnam-gu, Seoul on the 16th. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers.

[Asia Economy reporters Hyunju Lee and Boryeong Geum] The People Power Party announced on the 18th that it opposes the Democratic Party of Korea's proposal to prioritize the passage of the supplementary budget (supplementary budget) government plan worth '16 trillion won + α.'

Ryu Seong-geol, a member of the People Power Party and the opposition party's secretary of the National Assembly's Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, held a press conference at the communication center on the same day and stated, "Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung promised the public a supplementary budget of 35 trillion won, but the Democratic Party leadership is attempting to force through a 'meager vote-buying supplementary budget' of only 16 trillion won."

Earlier, the Democratic Party held an emergency press briefing at the National Assembly main building in the morning regarding the passage of the supplementary budget and said, "This supplementary budget is a lifeline to save our people from the COVID-19 crisis," adding, "If the opposition party continues to block the livelihood and quarantine budget, the Democratic Party will swiftly process the supplementary budget alone in consultation with the government." The Democratic Party intends to prioritize the passage of the government plan of '16 trillion won + α' and consider a second supplementary budget after the presidential election. Although 5 million won was budgeted for quarantine support funds for small business owners, the government rejected expanding the supplementary budget, so the Democratic Party shifted to first providing 3 million won according to the government plan and then disbursing additional support funds later.

In response, Representative Ryu said, "I cannot understand whether the Democratic Party of Lee Jae-myung is wavering while opposing the 46 trillion won supplementary budget demanded by the People Power Party," and added, "The Democratic Party only talks about the difficulties of small business owners but seems to focus solely on pre-election showmanship rather than sufficient compensation for small business owners and self-employed people."

Ryu Seong-geol, opposition party secretary of the National Assembly Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, member of the People Power Party [Photo by Yonhap News]

Regarding the Democratic Party's claim to support small business owners by passing the supplementary budget before the election and handling the rest afterward, Representative Ryu said, "I cannot help but ask why candidate Lee does not warn the Democratic Party leadership and instruct them to pass the 35 trillion won supplementary budget but cowardly hides and remains silent," adding, "The Democratic Party should answer why they cannot provide substantial support immediately, why small business owners and self-employed people in distress must wait until after March 9, even though they say additional payments can be made around the 18th."

He continued, "I cannot help but question what the Democratic Party's true intention is in trying to rush the process in collusion with the government without thinking about persuading the government together with the opposition in the National Assembly, which should represent public opinion," and said, "The Democratic Party's supplementary budget review behavior and additional support after the presidential election are nothing but a performance, and I cannot help but doubt their sincerity."

He also proposed, "Let's handle a package including a significant increase in support funds for small business owners, 100% minimum compensation of 1 million won, retroactive application of compensation, and related legal amendments to include travel agencies and performance planning businesses as compensation targets."

The ruling and opposition parties are scheduled to hold a Budget and Accounts Committee meeting from 2 p.m. on the same day to discuss the supplementary budget plan.

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