Lee Jae-myung: "When I said 'Respected Park Geun-hye,' people really thought I respected her"

"'Are you pretending to be respectful just to gain votes?' That's not true at all... It's ignoring the collective intelligence level of the people"

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, attended an invited lecture at the Seoul National University Financial Economics Seminar held at Seoul National University in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, on the 7th, delivering a lecture to students on the theme of "Youth Salon Lee Jae-myung's Economic Story," focusing on the economic policy direction and philosophy. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Soyoung] Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, recently referred to former President Park Geun-hye, who is currently incarcerated, with the honorific "respected," saying, "When I said 'respected President Park Geun-hye,' people really thought I respected her."

On the morning of the 7th, at a lecture invited by the Seoul National University Finance and Economics Seminar, Lee stated, "Words have context, and the real problem is ignoring that context."

During the lecture, when a student pointed out his remark that "economics is not a science," he explained, "To clarify, in case it sounds ignorant, I mean it is not an indisputable truth. I am not saying economics is unscientific; what I mean is that strict scientific theories should not exist in the strict sense."

He continued, "When I said 'respected former President Park,' people thought I genuinely respected her and asked if I was pretending to respect her just to gain votes, but that is not true at all. This underestimates the collective intelligence of our people."

Earlier, on the 3rd, Lee caused controversy by using the expression "respected Park Geun-hye" during a soju and beer gathering with young people in Jeonju, Jeonbuk.

That day, a young person asked Lee, "Five years ago, when you came to Iksan, Jeonbuk, and went with friends in their 20s who chanted 'Lee Jae-myung,' I asked if it was a religious group among ourselves. The atmosphere really did not match with the youth; do you expect that from young people?"

Lee replied, "Rather than expecting it, politicians live on support. Politicians are actually very timid and shy. I am too, but when someone says 'whoa, whoa' when I feel discouraged, I gain strength, suddenly gain confidence, and my wrinkles smooth out."

At this point, he cited former President Park Geun-hye as an example, saying, "That’s why our respected former President Park went to Seomun Market in Daegu when she was having a hard time as president. Going there gives you strength."