Jin Joong-kwon "Four people who would have lived if they hadn't met Lee Jae-myung... Human anger"

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, faced criticism from Jin Joong-kwon, Special Professor at Kwangwoon University, who said, "I really feel anger at how a human being can behave like that," following the news of Jeon Hyung-soo, who served as Lee's first chief secretary during his time as governor of Gyeonggi Province, taking his own life.

Jin Joong-kwon Photo by Yonhap News

On the afternoon of the 10th, Professor Jin appeared on CBS Radio's 'Park Jae-hong's One-on-One Match' and mentioned the cases of people close to Lee who had died, saying, "There are four now. If they hadn't met him, these people would still be alive." He then questioned, "Since it happened because of him, wouldn't a person feel a pang of conscience?" and pointed out, "But without any such feeling, he keeps blaming the prosecution."

Earlier, Lee raised his voice at a field supreme council meeting held in the Gyeonggi Provincial Council's main conference room regarding Jeon's extreme choice, saying, "This happened because of the prosecution's excessive pressure investigation, not because of Lee Jae-myung. Is being investigated my fault?"

In response, Professor Jin said, "Jeon was investigated only once last year," adding, "Since it was a recorded investigation, all situations were recorded. Would the prosecution conduct coercive or inappropriate interrogations there?"

Professor Jin stated, "I don't think this person (Jeon) is responsible. As a public official, he had to do as he was told, and he followed the directions of his superiors," and pointed out, "Ultimately, the person who gave those orders was Lee." He continued, "Jeon took his life due to guilt and burden over being involved in illegal administrative acts, but (Lee) says 'this is because of the prosecution.' I am truly angry as a human being."

Regarding the fact that Jeon's suicide note included a message telling Lee to step down from politics, Professor Jin said, "(Lee) should take responsibility and say, 'No one else is responsible,' 'I just did as I was told,' but he completely avoids it," and claimed, "People losing their lives could continue to happen."

According to the police, on the 9th, Jeon was found dead in an apartment in Sujeong-gu, Seongnam City, Gyeonggi Province. Jeon had been booked on charges of illegally facilitating Naver's 4 billion won sponsorship to Seongnam FC and was investigated at the end of last year.