Yang Seung-jo vs Kang Seung-gyu Debate Remarks Spark 'Back-and-Forth'

Candidate Yang files complaint against Candidate Kang at Chungnam Police Agency for spreading false information
Candidate Kang states, "Questioned based on a lawmaker's remarks at the Chungnam Provincial Council plenary session"

The 22nd National Assembly candidates for Hongseong-Yesan electoral district, Kang Seung-gyu of the People Power Party and Yang Seung-jo of the Democratic Party, are participating in a broadcast debate. / Captured by the Central Election Broadcasting Debate Commission

Candidates for the National Assembly from Hongseong-gun and Yesan-gun in Chungnam are engaged in a dispute over statements made during a debate.

On the 1st, the campaign team of Yang Seung-jo from the Democratic Party of Korea filed a complaint with the Chungnam Provincial Police Agency against Kang Seung-gyu of the People Power Party for allegedly spreading false information.

On the 31st of last month, a debate for candidates in the Hongseong-gun and Yesan-gun electoral district, hosted by the Election Broadcasting Debate Committee and organized by TJB, was broadcast.

During the debate, candidate Kang stated, "The International Convention Center, Chungnam Knowledge Industry Center, and Chungnam Innovation Sanghoe, which were supposed to be located in Naepo, were decided by candidate Yang Seung-jo to be placed in Cheonan."

Regarding the free bus fare program for those aged 75 and older, which candidate Yang implemented as the first in the nation during his tenure as governor, Kang claimed, "It is nothing new."

In response, Yang's camp issued a statement rebutting these claims.

Yang's camp stated, "Chungnam Innovation Sanghoe is a shared economy platform project jointly established by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Chungnam Province, and Cheonan City in 2019 as part of the Ministry's 'Creating Communities Where Everyone Thrives' project," adding, "Since the project was implemented targeting the Cheonan Central Logistics Center, the claim that the project location was moved from Hongseong to Cheonan is inaccurate."

They continued, "The Chungnam Knowledge Industry Center and the International Convention Center are part of the 'KTX Station Area R&D Cluster Development Project,' a campaign pledge by President Moon Jae-in in February 2018," and "Candidate Yang took office as governor in July 2018, so this claim is factually incorrect."

Yang's camp pointed out, "Candidate Kang's false claims violate the Public Official Election Act," and requested "a correction of the false information and an official apology."

In response, Kang's camp rebutted again, stating, "The question was based on a statement made by a member of the Chungnam Provincial Council during a plenary session in 2021."

They added, "The minutes state that 'the multi-hundred-billion-won projects promoted by Chungnam Province have ignored Naepo New Town over the past three years and concentrated projects in the most developed city, Cheonan,'" and argued, "Threatening to file a complaint without verifying the questions raised during the debate is itself spreading false information."