[President-Party Dialogue] Hwang Kyo-ahn "Who Comes First, the People or China... Park Neung-hoo and Kang Kyung-wha Must Be Dismissed"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] On the 28th, Hwang Kyo-ahn, leader of the United Future Party, criticized the government's initial response to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) for not blocking arrivals from China, asking, "Do our people come first or China?" He also raised his voice demanding the dismissal of Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo and Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Kyung-wha.

At the dialogue between ruling and opposition party leaders held at Sarangjae in the National Assembly that day, Hwang said in his opening remarks, "The ban on arrivals from China should have been implemented at the early stage of the crisis."

He criticized, "How persistently did not only our party but also the public and experts demand and appeal? However, the president did not listen," adding, "The government ultimately failed to act properly."

Referring to COVID-19 as the "Wuhan coronavirus," Hwang pointed out, "The Wuhan coronavirus outbreak was initially an infectious disease spread originating from China, but our country's Wuhan coronavirus situation took on the character of a man-made disaster," and said, "The entire administration, including the president and prime minister who said it would end soon, was complacent and hasty."

He stated, "Groundless optimism loosened the quarantine posture, and as a result, many citizens who returned to their daily lives were exposed to the threat of infection," and criticized, "Even then, blaming others and shifting responsibility continued. The relay of outrageous remarks by ministers and ruling party figures amplified the public's anger and sense of deprivation, and unredeemable words such as 'Daegu coronavirus' and 'Daegu lockdown' deeply hurt the hearts of the residents of Daegu and Gyeongbuk."

Hwang said, "The people are seriously asking whether our citizens come first or China," and added, "I do not want to believe, as is said in the market, that the ban on arrivals from China is not being implemented because of Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Korea, but if so, I am curious as to why and for what reason it is not being done."

He also demanded the dismissal of Minister Park to resolve the situation. Hwang said, "The first thing to do is to break the chain of incompetence and irresponsibility," and raised his voice, "Dismiss Park Neung-hoo, Minister of Health and Welfare, who suddenly turned our citizens, the victims of the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak, into perpetrators and blamed them; and Kang Kyung-wha, Minister of Foreign Affairs, who does nothing despite major countries around the world blocking our citizens' entry and even imposing unfair quarantine measures."

He said, "I have endured so far thinking that changing generals during a war is not desirable, but now it has gone beyond that level," and added, "Immediately deploy expert-type talents to overcome the situation. I will have the National Assembly handle all personnel procedures, including hearings, at once."

Hwang emphasized, "Declare the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions as special disaster areas, and mobilize all human and material support to rescue our citizens of Daegu and Gyeongbuk from the infectious disease crisis," and "Urgent support is also absolutely necessary for small business owners and self-employed people who are suffering in this bleak situation with no visible future."