President Lee: "Livelihood Coupons Aim to Revive Consumption, Prepare Additional Programs"... Cautions Against Misuse of Consumption Coupons (Comprehensive)

President Lee Jae Myung Presides Over Cabinet Meeting on the 22nd
Presidential Office Warns, "Reselling or Converting Coupons to Cash Is Illegal"
Emphasizes Seriousness of Flood Damage and Public Officials' Attitude
"Strict Discipline for Public Officials Enjoying Drinking and Entertainment at Disaster Sites"

President Lee Jae Myung is declaring the opening by striking the gavel at the Cabinet meeting held on the 22nd at the Yongsan Presidential Office building in Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 22nd, President Lee Jae Myung presided over a Cabinet meeting and instructed, "(The Livelihood Recovery Consumption Coupon) has the effect of supporting income, but more importantly, it is about supporting and reviving consumption. I ask each ministry to prepare additional programs to stimulate consumption."

That day, while presiding over the Cabinet meeting at the Yongsan Presidential Office in Seoul, President Lee stated, "I am reminded that there are so many people living in difficult circumstances." President Lee also said, "There may be inflationary pressures resulting from the Livelihood Recovery Consumption Coupon," but added, "Even when the consumption coupon was not distributed, prices kept rising for various unjustifiable reasons." He then urged, "I ask that price management be handled swiftly and strictly."

President Lee continued, "Please ensure that no one is left out of the eligible recipients and that blind spots are minimized by encouraging local governments to take clear action," explaining, "This is because applications are generally submitted online and digitally, which may exclude some people."

However, the Presidential Office cautioned that using the Livelihood Recovery Consumption Coupon for purposes other than its intended use, such as reselling or converting it to cash, is illegal. Presidential spokesperson Kang Yoo Jung stated, "On the 21st, it was found that prepaid cards were being traded on some secondhand transaction sites," and explained, "In such cases, according to the Subsidy Management Act, all or part of the support amount may be reclaimed, and future subsidy payments may be restricted along with the imposition of penalty charges."

Kang further explained that if a local gift certificate merchant receives gift certificates without actually selling goods, they may face up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 20 million won under the Specialized Credit Finance Business Act, and their merchant registration may also be revoked.

President Lee also emphasized the seriousness of flood damage and the attitude of public officials. He stated, "I ask that public officials who enjoy drinking and entertainment or act recklessly without countermeasures at the harsh scenes where people are dying be strictly disciplined." However, President Lee added, "I have also seen many civil servants working diligently during disasters. Please identify as many exemplary cases as possible so that they can serve as models for society," and reiterated, "It is very important to reward and discipline public officials appropriately."

President Lee also stated, "Watching this year's monsoon and heavy rain, I realized that the existing methods and countermeasures have their limits," and instructed the Prime Minister, "Please devise fundamental new measures and conduct a thorough and accurate analysis of the situation." At the same time, he emphasized, "I ask that a comprehensive response system for natural disasters be newly established by region and by type, and that the maintenance of social infrastructure such as bridges and dams be expedited."

During this process, President Lee pointed out, "There are too many deaths in our society." He analyzed, "There are many deaths caused by disasters and accidents, and too many people die from industrial accidents in the workplace. South Korea also has one of the highest suicide rates in the world."

Regarding industrial accidents in particular, President Lee criticized, "Recently, many industrial accident deaths occur because companies try to save costs to earn money and end up neglecting human life. Should the workplace where people go to earn a living become a place of death?" He added, "I will visit an industrial accident site as soon as possible to assess the situation and devise countermeasures."

This Cabinet meeting was the first attended by nine newly appointed ministers, including those from the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Environment, and Ministry of Employment and Labor. The new ministers shared their thoughts on their appointments before the meeting at President Lee's suggestion. Afterwards, President Lee comprehensively reviewed the damage caused by the heavy rains and received reports on joint and individual response plans from relevant ministries.

During the Cabinet meeting, one amendment to the Construction Promotion Act, 18 Presidential Decrees, and one general agenda item were discussed. The amendment to the Construction Promotion Act requires the disclosure of the name of the construction company, the name of the construction project, the location of the site, and the number of fatalities in cases where deaths occur due to construction accidents at construction sites, in order to strengthen the responsibility for safety management and prevent construction accidents. The agenda for Presidential Decrees included the Ministry of National Defense organizational restructuring plan (Partial Amendment to the Organization of the Ministry of National Defense and Its Affiliated Agencies), which President Lee had ordered further review of at the previous Cabinet meeting.