KIM HYE-KYUNG HOLDS PRESS CONFERENCE

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With less than a month to go until the presidential election in March, two leading presidential candidates have been troubled by the so-called “spouse risk.” Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung’s wife, Kim Hye-kyung, held a press conference yesterday and apologized for the allegations of abuse of power. She said that it is all her fault and that she would take full responsibility even after the election is over.

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​Kim Hye-kyung, Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung’s wife, stopped making public appearances since a week ago, over the allegation that she used a government credit card for personal expenses and abused her power by having government employees run personal errands. On Wednesday, she showed up at a press conference to issue an apology.

[Soundbite] Kim Hye-kyung(DP Pres. Candidate Lee Jae-myung’s wife) : "I should have kept my private affairs separate from public matters. I sincerely apologize to the people and especially to the whistleblower."

Her apology comes 12 days after the accusations were first lodged. Kim said everything is her fault and the result of her inadequacy and vowed to bear full responsibility.

[Soundbite] Kim Hye-kyung(Lee Jae-myung’s wife) : "I will provide a sincere explanation to the allegations and bear full responsibility even after the election."

While answering questions from reporters... She claimed to have been long time friends with Bae, a public employee of the Gyeonggi-do Provincial Office who had run personal errands for her. As for the whistleblower, who reported on her, Kim explained that they had met only once at Bae’s introduction. She added that she believes the whistleblower is also a victim.

[Soundbite] Kim Hye-kyung(Lee Jae-myung’s wife) : "It is my fault. I think the whistleblower is a victim."

However, the whistleblower said after the press conference that Kim didn’t sound sincere and the presser failed to grasp the essence of the problem. The whistleblower emphasized that the presidential candidate’s wife didn’t answer the important questions. The records of at least eleven more purchases were released. They show that for seven months since March, Kim had canceled her personal card transactions and instead paid with government cards. The People Power Party criticized her press conference as an irrelevant apology and a ploy to buy time until the election day under the pretext of investigation and audit. The Justice Party and the People’s Party also commented that the suspicions have not been cleared.