Yoo Seung-min: "Taking Defense Budget for Disaster Relief... 'Makgapa' Government"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suhwan] Yoo Seung-min, a presidential candidate from the People Power Party, criticized the government as a "reckless administration" on the 31st in relation to the 562.9 billion KRW cut from the defense budget to fund the second supplementary budget's disaster relief funds.

On the same day, Yoo stated on Facebook, "There are other budgets to cut, so how can you say that the defense budget to protect the country can be reduced because of disaster relief funds?"

Yoo explained, "The cut budget was necessary for key projects such as the F35 stealth fighter, maritime patrol aircraft, the kill chain, and the Korean missile defense system to respond to North Korea's nuclear missile and submarine threats," adding, "These projects are very urgent and essential to counter North Korea's nuclear missile provocations."

He continued, "I have clearly opposed providing disaster relief funds to 88% of households, calling it bad populism," and said, "The Moon Jae-in administration's mistake of cutting the defense budget for the sake of indiscriminately distributing money as bad populism will be recorded in history as an anti-national act."

He also added, "The pathetic defense minister who could not say a word and cooperated even as the core defense budget was cut in this way does not even have the minimum qualifications to remain in that position."