Ruling and Opposition Gyeonggi Governor Candidates' 'Corporate Card Attack'... Lee Jae-myung Refutes, "My Wife Did Not Use It"

"Problematic that my wife received personal help from a public official... My fault"
"The ruling party filed the complaint themselves and now plays the 'investigation' media game"
Kim Dong-yeon "There is an issue with the corporate card allegations" Kim Eun-hye "We will block misuse of corporate cards represented by beef purchases"

Lee Jae-myung, Chief Campaign Chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Woo-seok] Lee Jae-myung, the overall election committee chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea, clarified on the 19th regarding allegations that his wife Kim Hye-kyung misused a corporate card for personal purposes, stating, "It was not my wife who used the corporate card."

On the same day, Lee appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and responded to Kim Dong-yeon, the Democratic Party candidate for Gyeonggi Province governor, who said there was a clear problem with Kim Hye-kyung's 'corporate card allegations.' Lee said, "The issue is that it was not my wife who used the corporate card," and added, "He spoke as if my wife used the corporate card, but the problem is that my wife received personal assistance from a protocol officer."

He stated, "The protocol officer is responsible for the governor's protocol, and the spouse should only handle protocol at official events, but there were a few instances of personal assistance, which is indeed wrong. I admit that it was my fault." However, he continued, "Other issues are being investigated because the People Power Party filed complaints, yet they are playing media games by saying they are under investigation after filing complaints themselves. Although a public official provided some personal assistance a few times, that protocol officer was hired through an open competitive recruitment process for the position," and raised his voice, saying, "This person is doing their job, so is it reasonable to claim that the salary paid is entirely a loss to the national treasury just because of personal connections?"

Meanwhile, candidate Kim Dong-yeon responded on the 18th at the Gwahun Club debate to the question, "Do you think there are problems with the allegations related to Chairman Lee that surfaced during the last presidential election?" by saying, "In the case of the corporate card, yes," and added, "I am aware of allegations regarding Baekhyeon-dong and Seongnam FC issues as well. Like Daejang-dong, necessary investigations should be conducted by the prosecution or police to uncover the truth."

Kim Eun-hye, the People Power Party candidate for Gyeonggi Province governor, also targeted Kim Hye-kyung's 'corporate card allegations' on the 19th, announcing plans to disclose detailed business promotion expenses and strengthen disciplinary actions against personal misuse of corporate cards. In a press release that day, Kim promised, "We will root out various corruption allegations in Gyeonggi Province that surfaced during the last presidential election and achieve administrative innovation suitable for the Fourth Industrial Revolution era," and pledged, "We will block all kinds of corporate card misuse, represented by the 'beef corporate card' case."

Kim further emphasized, "To ensure the execution of provincial funds based on law and principles, we plan to disclose all detailed business promotion expenses and receipts and strengthen disciplinary measures when personal misuse of corporate cards is detected."