Ithanhee: "100 Trillion Won COVID-19 Loss Compensation, People Power Party Must Act Immediately"

Lee Tan-hee, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending and speaking at the National Assembly's Education Committee's audit of the Ministry of Education held at the National Assembly on the 1st. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jin-young] On the 8th, Lee Tan-hee, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, responded to Kim Jong-in, the general election committee chairman of the People Power Party, who proposed “100 trillion won for COVID-19 loss compensation,” saying, “We must take action immediately.”

Lee said on Facebook that afternoon, “I welcome (Chairman Kim’s proposal). However, self-employed people cannot afford to wait until after the presidential election,” and emphasized, “As Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung said, we must start right away.”

Earlier, candidate Lee responded to this proposal by saying, “If it is sincere, I welcome it.” Representative Song Young-gil also held a video conference with some media outlets that afternoon and stated, “To find a way to secure 100 trillion won, I propose a four-party meeting among myself, Democratic Party floor leader Yoon Ho-jung, Chairman Kim, and People Power Party floor leader Kim Ki-hyun.”

Lee pointed out, “The People Power Party should not set the condition of taking power and should act immediately,” and criticized, “Even during the National Assembly session in July, the People Power Party outwardly insisted on ‘retroactive application of loss compensation’ but did not cooperate with practical measures to secure the budget.”

He continued, “Let’s not repeat the same ‘discrepancy between words and actions’ as before and push forward immediately. From the perspective of protecting the people’s property rights and lives, COVID-19 is a war and a matter of national security,” raising his voice, “It is natural for debt to increase during wartime, and there can be no ruling or opposition party in front of national security.”

He added, “If we wait until next year’s presidential election and the roots of self-employed people dry up, it will be meaningless,” and urged, “We must promptly proceed with the supplementary budget.”