[Yoon's Full Remarks at the Cabinet Meeting] "Listening to Public Sentiment with a Humble Attitude... Economic Populism Is a Drug"

First Cabinet Meeting After General Election Defeat

President Yoon Suk-yeol stated on the 16th regarding the defeat in the April 10 general election, "I will communicate more with a humbler and more flexible attitude, and I will start by listening to the public sentiment myself."

In his remarks during the live broadcast of the Cabinet meeting at 10 a.m. that day, President Yoon addressed the election results, which ended in a crushing defeat for the ruling party, saying, "Over the past two years since my inauguration, I have walked the path for national interest focusing solely on the people, but I have fallen short of the public’s expectations," and added, "Above all, I should have taken much more meticulous care of the lives of the struggling common people."

He went on to mention economic issues such as budget, inflation, finance, stocks, and housing, as well as educational issues like private education and childcare, reflecting, "No matter how right the direction of state affairs is or how many good policies are implemented, if the people do not actually feel the change, the government has not fulfilled its role."

On the other hand, he criticized economic populism as "something akin to a drug when viewed in light of our future." This appears to be a critique of the 250,000 KRW per person livelihood recovery support fund proposed as an election pledge by Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea.

Meanwhile, on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Sewol ferry disaster, he said, "Although 10 years have passed, the situation of that day, April 16, 2014, is still vivid in my mind," and expressed condolences, "I pray for the repose of the unfortunate victims and once again offer my deepest condolences to the bereaved families."

Below is the full text of President Yoon’s remarks at the Cabinet meeting

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Let us begin the Cabinet meeting. Cabinet members,

The top priority of state affairs is, first, the livelihood of the people; second, the livelihood of the people; and third, the livelihood of the people. Helping those in difficulty and taking care of the people's livelihood is the very reason for the government's existence. In this regard, we must all humbly accept the public sentiment revealed through this general election. I will communicate more with a humbler and more flexible attitude, and I will start by listening to the public sentiment myself.

Over the past two years since my inauguration, I have walked the path for national interest focusing solely on the people, but I have fallen short of the public’s expectations. Although we have done our best to set the right direction for state affairs and implement it, I believe we have been insufficient in creating changes that the people can feel. Even if policies are broadly for the people, I think there were shortcomings in detailed areas. Above all, we should have taken much more meticulous care of the lives of the struggling common people. We concentrated budget and policies to fully manage inflation. However, we were unable to reach the point of improving the circumstances of the struggling common people. In the process of maintaining sound fiscal management for future generations and resolving excessive fiscal addiction, there were many parts we failed to carefully consider. We made efforts to reduce the burden on the people, including interest refunds. Nevertheless, I believe we did not provide sufficient help to the livelihoods suffering from fundamentally high interest rates. To correct the adverse effects of the three real estate laws, we activated housing supply and eased redevelopment and reconstruction regulations to normalize the real estate market and lower the skyrocketing housing prices. However, we failed to carefully consider the anxieties of those who find it difficult to own homes, tenants, and those who must relocate due to development and reconstruction. We prohibited short selling to revitalize the stock market and raised the threshold for capital gains tax to prevent funds from flowing out of the securities market, supporting corporate value-up to help the public build assets. However, consideration for the lives of the common people who find it difficult to access the stock market was insufficient.

Also, although we did our best to speed up policies, I believe there were many shortcomings in overcoming the time lag between policy and the field. To resolve the difficulties of our economy, which is highly dependent on foreign trade, we continuously promoted export drives, sound fiscal management, and private-led growth, and as exports revived, the economy is recovering. However, the government’s efforts were insufficient to spread the warmth of this economic recovery evenly to all citizens. We revived the nuclear power ecosystem damaged by the nuclear phase-out policy and fostered advanced industries including semiconductors to enhance industrial competitiveness, but the vitality of this recovery has not been fully delivered to small and medium-sized enterprises, small business owners, and many workers. To nurture the dreams and hopes of our youth, we greatly expanded national scholarships and significantly increased support for youth asset formation and home ownership. However, many young people still do not feel the change and bear the heavy reality of worrying about the future. Furthermore, our government has made great efforts to dismantle the private education cartel to provide fair opportunities to students and strengthen university competitiveness. We have also devoted ourselves to realizing a national care system through the Neulbom School policy. However, there are still many areas that need improvement to fully resolve issues on the ground.

Ultimately, no matter how right the direction of state affairs is or how many good policies are implemented, if the people do not actually feel the change, the government has not fulfilled its role. Reckless cash handouts and populism ruin the country's future. Economic populism corresponds to political collectivism and totalitarianism. Therefore, when viewed in light of our future, it is like a drug. However, I believe it is the government’s duty to more carefully attend to the difficulties currently faced by the people and to take care of public sentiment. In particular, we must take better care of each individual struggling on the edge.

I will get closer to the people and delve deeper into their livelihoods, listen to the difficulties on the ground, and actively take care of the lives of the people. We will implement policies that practically help the people more swiftly and fill in the gaps through livelihood forums with the public. We will strive to narrow the time lag between policy and the field by more accurately grasping the demands on the ground and pushing forward tailored policies. We have worked to break down departmental barriers based on the policy demands of the people, but we recognize that the demands of the people are very diverse, and we must implement tailored policies to meet these diverse demands.

Moreover, structural reforms for the future of the Republic of Korea cannot stop. We will continue to promote the three major reforms of labor, education, and pensions, as well as medical reform, while paying more attention to and listening to reasonable opinions. While fulfilling the government’s responsibilities, we must also cooperate more closely with the National Assembly. We must explain well and communicate more with the National Assembly regarding the budgets and bills necessary for stabilizing livelihoods. Cabinet members, please do your best until the end to ensure that the bills being promoted by each ministry pass before the 21st National Assembly ends.

I will think and examine more deeply what changes the people desire and what is the right path for the people and the country. If it is for the livelihood of the people, I will not hesitate to do anything. Let us all listen more carefully to the voices of the people and make several times more strenuous efforts to solve the difficulties of their livelihoods. Cabinet members, please foster a working atmosphere in the public service for livelihood stabilization. Also, always check whether discipline has been compromised.

In the early morning of April 13, Iran attacked Israel. The Israel-Hamas conflict that broke out last October is spreading throughout the Middle East. Our government is closely cooperating with related countries and operating an emergency economic security response system. The armed conflict in the Middle East is not a distant issue happening elsewhere. The Strait of Hormuz is a key energy transport route through which one-quarter of the world’s oil trade volume and one-fifth of LNG gas trade volume pass. Instability in the Middle East directly leads to rising international oil prices, which will cause enormous damage to our economy and supply chains. In particular, 60% of the oil used in our country is transported through the Strait of Hormuz, and our country’s dependence on Middle Eastern crude oil reaches 72%. The huge increase in transportation costs and rising international oil prices will directly lead to price increases in our country and cause even greater suffering for the common people.

Considering the seriousness of these issues, on the afternoon of the 14th, I convened the relevant ministers and chaired an emergency economic security meeting. Above all, the government will strengthen safety measures for overseas nationals, ships, and diplomatic missions to protect the safety of our people. We also comprehensively reviewed the potential impacts of fluctuations in international oil prices on our economy depending on the possibility of escalation or prolongation of the situation. Each ministry should operate an analysis and management system for energy supply and supply chains to ensure thorough situation management. Furthermore, we must proactively respond to various potential risk factors. Please maintain a firm readiness posture regarding the impact of instability in the Middle East on our security and the possibility of provocations by North Korea.

Today marks the 10th anniversary of the Sewol ferry disaster. Although 10 years have passed, the situation of that day, April 16, 2014, is still vivid in my mind. I pray for the repose of the unfortunate victims and once again offer my deepest condolences to the bereaved families.

[Image source=Yonhap News]