President Lee Jae-myung on Thursday directly challenged the opposition People Power Party (PPP) to apologize over debunked allegations linking him to organized crime, saying "Since the wrongdoing of the PPP as a legitimate political party has been exposed for all to see, they should now apologize."
The president had previously demanded apologies and follow-up reports from media outlets that covered the gang ties allegations. This time, he publicly called on the opposition party to apologize. The PPP pushed back, accusing him of "trying to muddy the waters," escalating the confrontation.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) titled "Won't the PPP apologize for fabricating and spreading the gang ties allegation?", President Lee wrote, "Even young children apologize when their wrongdoing is exposed."
"A person surnamed Jang affiliated with the PPP claimed Lee Jae-myung had gang ties, and the party systematically spread this allegation to win the last presidential election," the president wrote. "Now that Jang's guilty verdict has been finalized, exposing the gang ties claim as a lie, shouldn't they at least express regret?"
"This is already in the past, but without the gang ties allegation, without the fabricated Daejang-dong corruption scandal, the election result would have been completely different," he added, noting the margin of victory was "0.73%, less than one in 100 people."
President Lee continued, "I had suspected that the PPP rewarded those who helped them steal the presidential election by spreading the gang ties allegation, whether with money or positions.... The truth of this matter will eventually come to light." He added, "I await a sincere official apology from the PPP for changing the election outcome by spreading the absurd gang ties allegation."
Presidential spokesperson Jeon Eun-su said, "Elections are the flower of democracy, and voters' informed choices must begin with accurate factual information." She added, "The malicious falsehoods spread by the PPP were a direct attempt to distort the electoral system, the foundation of democracy, and they must apologize and take responsibility."
Rather than apologize, the PPP launched a counterattack demanding the president apologize first, arguing that President Lee has engaged in far more actions harmful to national and public interests.
"We understand that President Lee has engaged in far more fake news and agitation harmful to the people and national interests," chief spokesperson Park Sung-hoon told reporters. "Rather than making divisive statements that obstruct national unity, we earnestly hope he will take the lead in unifying the nation."
Floor leader Song Eon-seok wrote on Facebook, "Has the Democratic Party of Korea apologized for its long history of fabrication and agitation, including the Kim Dae-up military service scandal, mad cow disease agitation, Cheonan conspiracy theories, Sewol ferry rumors, THAAD rumors, and Fukushima contaminated water rumors?"
Song added, "Now that he's in trouble over spreading fake news videos, he's trying to muddy the waters." He also took a jab at the president's abbreviation, noting, "For reference, it's 'People Power Party,' not 'PPP Party.'"
