President Lee Jae-myung on Wednesday stressed a strong response to market-disrupting activities, declaring that "hoarding is a path to ruin" and warning that "those who hoard to make a quick buck will be completely ruined."
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, the president noted that "under the law, when hoarding occurs, the entire stockpiled goods are confiscated, and if confiscation is difficult, their value is collected." He added that "because mandatory confiscation — that is, seizure and collection — is an obligation, once caught, we cannot let offenders off the hook even if we wanted to."
Lee also pushed back against those who think they can evade detection. "You think you just won't get caught?" he asked, before expressing confidence in the whistleblower reward system. "The reward system pays 20 to 30 percent of the value of hoarded goods as compensation. Can you really avoid getting caught?"
"The era of abnormality is now drawing to a close, and the era of normality has begun," Lee said. "Those who try to seek unfair profits by relying on abnormality will pay a heavy price." He added, "I am giving advance notice because some people still don't realize the world has changed and are heading down a path to ruin with outdated thinking."
Earlier, at a Cabinet meeting on Monday, Lee had also ordered that "hoarded supplies must be confiscated, even if it causes disorder in market order or if the supplies are tied up." Emphasizing the need for strong sanctions against hoarding as a market-disrupting activity amid the Middle East conflict, Lee said, "We must take a practical approach — an effective one," adding that "the confiscation clause was written into the law because it is all necessary."
He also instructed officials to "report separately and quickly," saying, "Prepare long-term measures, and for short-term action, decide what to do right now. If it seems difficult right away, just seize the goods."
