Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party of Korea presidential candidate, said on the 4th that he would strive to secure as much evaded tax revenue as possible and reorganize inefficient budgets. He criticized the independent presidential candidate Han Duck-soo for referring to the 'Gwangju incident,' saying it denotes the rioters.
After completing his 'listening tour' in the alleyways of Jecheon, North Chungcheong Province, in the afternoon, Lee Jae-myung met with reporters and noted, "As the economy deteriorates, the government's financial capabilities have significantly decreased, and the Yoon Suk-yeol administration has implemented many tax cuts for the wealthy," adding, "The financial measures must focus on maximizing the collection of evaded revenue."
When asked, 'You claim you will alleviate the debt of self-employed individuals, but where will the revenue come from?' he replied, "There are many evaded tax revenues that can be collected but are not."
Earlier, Lee Jae-myung had indicated in the morning related to the increased loans for small business owners during the COVID-19 period, "We will systematically implement exceptional measures from debt adjustment to debt forgiveness."
Lee Jae-myung stated, "If the economic situation improves, tax revenue will multiply," and added, "To achieve that, it is necessary to mobilize either private or future resources, and also to reduce and reorganize government finances."
He further emphasized, "I need to reorganize urgent or inefficient budgets, and I should also streamline tax expenditures and tax cuts," stating, "There may be unfulfilled promises from the last presidential election, which could be disappointing to the public. However, given the current financial situation, it is difficult. I have directed the policy headquarters not to make promises that require large-scale funding."
Regarding Han Duck-soo's statement on the 'Gwangju incident,' he said, "What kind of conservatism comes from forces that destroy constitutional order and deny the constitution itself? They belittle and denigrate the Gwangju democratic movement by referring to it as the Gwangju incident. Doesn't 'Gwangju incident' refer to the rioters? I don’t understand."