To the market-bound Moon and Seoul mayoral candidates... Jo Eun-hee asks, "Does COVID-19 avoid them?"

President Moon Jae-in and his wife Kim Jung-sook visited the Sorae Port Traditional Market in Namdong-gu, Incheon, on the morning of the 10th, purchasing blue crabs at a store. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Hana Na] As President Moon Jae-in and mayoral candidates from both ruling and opposition parties recently visited traditional markets, Cho Eun-hee, a People Power Party member and Seoul mayoral primary candidate, criticized, saying, "Does the coronavirus avoid the president's entourage?"

Earlier, on the 10th, President Moon Jae-in visited the Incheon Soraepogu Traditional Fish Market, which reopened after recovering from a fire, accompanied by his wife, Kim Jung-sook, as part of his Lunar New Year holiday schedule focused on public welfare.

On the 11th, candidate Cho mentioned President Moon's visit to the traditional fish market on Facebook, stating, "While dozens of security personnel and aides accompanied him around the market, numerous citizens gathered," and pointed out, "They recommended preparing for this Lunar New Year through online traditional markets, so this is inconsistent."

She also referred to Democratic Party lawmakers Park Young-sun and Woo Sang-ho, as well as People Power Party Seoul mayoral candidates Oh Se-hoon and Na Kyung-won, who visited markets ahead of the holiday, calling them "people living in a different world," and questioned, "Are votes more important than the health of Seoul citizens?"

She added, "How much help does buying fish cakes at traditional markets and taking a photo provide to merchants? It looks like only the candidates are celebrating the holiday," and said, "Let's stop the political show and get some work done."