Mayor Oh Sehun calls Lee Jae-myung's basic income policy an ”inefficient welfare policy” (South Korea)

On the 10th, Seoul Mayor Oh Sehun criticized the basic income policy of Lee Jae-myung, the former head of the Democratic Party of Korea, who has announced his candidacy for the presidential election, saying, "The basic income policy of the wealthy class is a
"It's an inefficient welfare policy that gives unnecessary amounts to middle-income families and pointless support that they don't need."
On the same day, Mayor Oh held the "Didimudol" event at the Seoul Welfare Foundation in Mapo-gu, Seoul.
After the "Income Roundtable (Foundation for Problem Solving)," he met with reporters and was asked about the difference between Didim dollar income and basic income, in which he made the above statement.
Didim Dollar Income is one of the representative welfare policies promoted by Mayor Oh, and aims to provide more generous support to the socially vulnerable.
This system is different from the "Lee Jae-myung-style basic income" that is provided to all citizens. Mayor Oh said, "The Didim dollar income has the great potential to encourage recipients to work.
"It has great benefits," he said. "We will continue testing it until it gains social acceptance, then expand the scope nationwide to build a new, more perfect 'K-welfare' system."
Didim Dollar Income is a system that compensates for the shortfall in household income between 85% and 90% of the standard median income of households, and the lower the income, the more the subsidy.
In addition, unlike livelihood benefits, for which eligibility is lost when income is earned, eligibility is maintained even if the income threshold is exceeded, so it is designed not to discourage people from working.
This project started in July 2022, and about 2,100 households have received support so far. After about three years of income verification, the government has received 85% of the standard median income and 100,000 didim dollars.
The results are clear: 8.6% of people have left the system and no longer need income support, and 31.1% of households have seen their earned income increase.
Participants in the discussion group said that Didim-dollar income has become a "new paradigm" for welfare, and shared their own experiences.
In response to a question from reporters about whether he plans to make the nationwide rollout of Didim Dollar Income a major campaign pledge in the presidential election, Mayor Oh said, "We need to verify whether the results are seen fairly across the country.
"However, it is unfortunate that we cannot take the time to prepare due to the early presidential elections," he said. "The verification of the national income guarantee system is better handled by the central government than by the city of Seoul.
"It is much more effective, and I hope that no matter who takes over the next administration, this kind of review of income guarantees will continue."