Policy Director: "Minsheng Debate, No Political Consideration... Will Visit Various Regions" (Comprehensive)

'Key Election' Opposition Claims Refuted
Considering Location, Timing, Issue Importance and Urgency
Presidential Office Posts Rebuttal to Opposition Claims on Website

Seong Tae-yoon, Chief of Policy at the Presidential Office, said on the 17th that the 20 livelihood discussion meetings held this year have been conducted "at the sites of livelihood issues directly related to topics presented by the people, without any political considerations." This is interpreted as an active response to criticisms from the opposition parties labeling the livelihood discussion meetings as 'government-led elections' and 'populist policies.'

Seong stated at a briefing held at the Yongsan Presidential Office in the afternoon that "there are plans to visit as many regions as possible to hear more diverse voices from various locations."

The livelihood discussion meetings represent a new form of work reporting proposed by President Yoon, departing from the traditional practice where government ministers reported individually to the president. Instead, the government collaborates across ministries to quickly apply policies requested by the public during the discussions. On the other hand, opposition parties such as the Democratic Party criticize the meetings, citing budget issues and accusing the government of making empty promises while traveling nationwide.

Regarding this, Seong explained, "The specific locations and timings are decided comprehensively considering the importance and urgency of the issues, efforts by local governments, and the timeliness of measures." He evaluated the meetings as "communication-oriented, on-site work reports involving discussions with the public, and collaborative, solution-oriented work reports where multiple related ministries seek solutions together for tasks presented by the people, rather than segmented reports by individual ministries."

He particularly emphasized, "The livelihood discussion meetings are a platform that embodies the government's action-oriented policy direction. If someone has to do it, we do it now, differentiating the Yoon Seok-yeol administration's communication platform from past governments by not just discussing and reviewing but proposing solutions."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Seong cited policy achievements such as reforming systems that have been conventionally maintained for over 50 years, including green belts and military facility protection areas, and relief measures for small business owners selling alcohol and tobacco to youths with forged IDs, which were resolved within a short period based on public requests. He also explained that related ministries such as the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Environment, and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport worked as one team to prepare comprehensive support plans for the semiconductor mega cluster project.

Furthermore, he detailed policies discussed in the 13th to 20th livelihood discussion meetings held in regions including Ulsan, Changwon in Gyeongnam, Seosan in Chungnam, Daegu, Gwangmyeong in Gyeonggi, Incheon, Chuncheon in Gangwon, and Muan in Jeonnam, stating, "The government is swiftly implementing follow-up measures to ensure that the tasks discussed in the livelihood discussion meetings lead to tangible changes felt by the people."

Regarding follow-up actions taken so far, Seong explained that amendments to the enforcement decree of the Device Distribution Act and expansion of telecom carrier subsidies, partial implementation of mandatory closures and holiday shifts for large marts in some regions along with seeking win-win measures with small business owners, and a comprehensive investigation and review of easing 91 types of levies have been carried out.

Presidential Office Website Posts Rebuttal to Opposition's Claims on 'Livelihood Discussion Meetings'... "Promise of 900 Trillion Won Budget Input is Distorted"

On the 17th, the Presidential Office released an additional rebuttal regarding the Democratic Party of Korea's claim that the livelihood forum was an "illegal election campaign promising a giveaway of 925 trillion won" in the "This is the Fact" section of its website. Photo by Presidential Office website capture

On the same day, the Presidential Office posted an additional rebuttal in the "The Truth Is" section of its website against the Democratic Party's claim that the livelihood discussion meetings are "illegal election campaigns promising 925 trillion won in giveaways."

In response, the Presidential Office pointed out, "The claim of promising a budget input of around 900 trillion won is a distortion of facts," explaining that "most of the budgets announced during the livelihood discussions are amounts that private companies voluntarily invest after assessing business feasibility, and the central government budget accounts for less than 10%."

Regarding the claim that policies are being issued without feasibility review, the office rebutted, "At the livelihood discussion stage, the overall direction is decided through consultations among related ministries, and detailed matters are specified during follow-up processes such as budget allocation and legislative amendments."

Addressing the criticism of government-led elections, it explained, "To prevent unnecessary political controversies ahead of the general election, participation of incumbent lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties has been excluded since the third livelihood discussion meeting." Concerning the claim that the livelihood discussion meetings are a well-scripted performance, it emphasized, "Except for President Yoon's opening remarks and discussion topics, participants freely express their opinions on-site, and free discussion is the core."

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