Kang Yujeong, Presidential Office Spokesperson Briefing
Lee: "Supplier-Centered Administrative Convenience"
Strongly Criticizes, "Correct It Immediately"
On the first day of the Minsheng Recovery Consumption Coupon distribution on the 21st, an employee is preparing physical cards at the Duam3-dong Administrative Welfare Center in Buk-gu, Gwangju. Photo by Yonhap News
On July 23, President Lee Jaemyung strongly criticized local governments that differentiated the colors of prepaid cards for the Minsheng Recovery Consumption Coupon according to the amount, stating that this was "a measure that shows a severe lack of sensitivity to human rights."
Kang Yujeong, spokesperson for the presidential office, made this statement during a briefing at the Yongsan presidential office on the same day. According to Kang, President Lee said, "This is a typical example of supplier-centered administrative convenience and a measure that is severely lacking in human rights sensitivity," and instructed that it be corrected immediately. Recently, when distributing Minsheng Recovery Consumption Coupon prepaid cards, Gwangju and Busan applied different colors based on the amount, thereby exposing users' income levels and whether they belonged to vulnerable groups.
Kang further reported that, on the morning of the same day, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, which is the responsible government department, conducted a full inspection of local government prepaid cards and took action by attaching stickers to the problematic cards to conceal their colors. Kang stated, "We will quickly address and improve any issues and public inconveniences that arise in the process of issuing, distributing, and using the consumption coupons going forward."
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