Lee Jae-myung's "Power of Thieves, Not the People"... Hong Joon-pyo Says "Thief Boss Acts Brazenly"

Representative Hong Jun-pyo of the People Power Party (left) and Governor Lee Jae-myung of Gyeonggi Province. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] Regarding the so-called 'Daejang-dong Development Project Favoritism Allegations' shaking the political world, Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung directly criticized the opposition, saying, "It's not the People Power Party but the 'Thieves' Power'." In response, Assemblyman Hong Joon-pyo retorted, "The leader of the thieves accusing us of being petty thieves is a classic case of blaming the victim (賊反荷杖)."

On the 27th, Lee posted on his Facebook under the title "I know what the 'Thieves' Power' did last summer," stating, "If your People Power Party hadn't desperately blocked Lee Jae-myung's public development, we would have recovered 100% of the development profits through public development, and this mess wouldn't have happened." He added, "The speculative forces who colluded with the People Power Party and bought land at high prices would have been ruined."

He then criticized the opposition and the media, saying, "Kim Ki-hyun, the floor leader of the People Power Party, and politicians, you are the ones who desperately blocked public development, created opportunities for private developers, and shared speculative profits. There is overwhelming clear evidence, and the public is not foolish enough to be deceived by fabricated media like the Chosun Ilbo and your one-sided false claims."

Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung posted on his Facebook on the 27th targeting the opposition party regarding the preferential treatment allegations in the Daejang-dong development project. Photo by Lee, Governor's Facebook capture.

He continued, "Do you remember who blocked public development and helped speculative development? Isn't it remarkable that a single basic local government head, surrounded by the ruling power and all vested interests in society, stubbornly recovered even 550 billion won of development profits?"

He added, "Do you now realize how reckless and foolish it is to accuse me of corruption when I risked my life to block half of your corruption and collusion with speculation, which are the main culprits of corruption? Now, if you mock us as the 'Thieves' Power' or the 'Burden of the People' instead of the People Power Party, you have no right to complain, right?"

On the 27th, Hong Jun-pyo, a member of the People Power Party, posted on his Facebook calling for a thorough investigation and strict punishment regarding the preferential treatment allegations in the Daejang-dong development project. Photo by Hong's Facebook capture.

On the same day, Assemblyman Hong also posted on his Facebook targeting Governor Lee. He said, "If the main body of the Daejang-dong development corruption case is left intact and only peripheral investigations are focused on, it will be a typical political investigation. The main body of the case is Lee Jae-myung, the mayor of Seongnam. He is also the person who designed the corrupt structure."

Assemblyman Hong demanded a thorough investigation and severe punishment regarding the favoritism allegations in the Daejang-dong development project. He stated, "Even if Assemblyman Kwak Sang-do is involved, I have no intention of defending him. He must be severely punished. However, if the main culprit is left to run free while only peripheral investigations are pursued, it will be difficult to avoid criticism of being a political prosecutor. Those involved in corruption, regardless of party, must be severely punished in the name of the people."