President Lee likens reform to cancer surgery, asks public to endure a little longer
In short
President Lee Jae-myung said on October 9 that reform for 'living better together' is like cancer surgery that must be done, warning that avoiding the operation because it hurts could even cost a life. He wrote this on X while sharing a news report about capital-region students applying to regional hub national universities, and asked the public to 'bear with it just a little, a little longer.'
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President Lee Jae-myung said on October 9 that "reform for 'living better together' is like cancer surgery that must be done to overcome illness and live a healthy, happy life." He added that "if you avoid surgery because it hurts, you will suffer longer and more, and could even lose your life." According to Seoul Shinmun and Hankook Ilbo, he also said that "the later it is delayed, the worse the disease gets and the more the surgery will cost." [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
Lee made the remarks on X, the former Twitter, while sharing a news report about students from the capital region applying to regional hub national universities in early admissions as a result of the government's regional balanced development policy. Newsis and Hankook Ilbo said the shared report described an increase of more than 50,000 such applicants for next year's early admissions, while Seoul Shinmun described the report as saying more than 50,000 capital-region students had applied. Newsis and Hankook Ilbo said the post was made in the morning. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
According to Newsis, Lee called the change "the effect of just one year of regional balanced development policy" and said that "from now on, things will get better in many areas, to a degree that can be felt." [ 1 ]
Turning to reform, Lee said that "in a world of diverse views and complex interests," deceiving the public by saying "surgery hurts" or "you will get better without it," or effectively obstructing it by saying "only I can do it," were "important tasks that all of us must overcome together." [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
He described the present as the very beginning of "a hard and long journey toward a better world where everyone is happy" and asked: "Citizens, please bear with it just a little, a little longer." Newsis, Seoul Shinmun and Hankook Ilbo all reported the appeal. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
Why it matters
Lee linked the remark to his government's regional balanced development policy, calling the reported rise in applications the effect of just one year of that policy, Newsis reported. He described the reform drive as being at the very beginning of a long journey and named misleading claims and obstruction as problems to be overcome, while asking the public for patience.
Key facts
- President Lee Jae-myung posted on X on October 9, comparing reform to cancer surgery that must be done. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Lee said avoiding surgery because it hurts means more pain for longer and could even cost a life. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- He said the later it is delayed, the worse the disease gets and the higher the cost of the surgery. [ 2 , 4 ]
- He was sharing a news report about capital-region students applying to regional hub national universities in early admissions, attributed to the government's regional balanced development policy. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Newsis and Hankook Ilbo said the shared report described an increase of more than 50,000 such applicants for next year's early admissions; Seoul Shinmun described the figure as more than 50,000 applicants. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Lee called deceiving the public by saying surgery hurts or is unnecessary, or obstructing it by saying 'only I can do it', important tasks to overcome together. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- He asked the public to 'bear with it just a little, a little longer.' [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Lee wrote on X on October 9 that reform for living better together is like cancer surgery that must be done. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Lee said avoiding surgery because it hurts could mean longer and greater pain and even loss of life. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Lee said the later surgery is delayed, the worse the disease gets and the more the surgery costs. [ 2 , 4 ]
- The post shared a report on capital-region students applying to regional hub national universities under the government's regional balanced development policy. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Lee described the moment as the very beginning of a hard, long journey to a better world where everyone is happy, and asked the public to endure a little longer. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
Still unclear
- Whether the 50,000 figure refers to an increase in applicants or to the total number of capital-region applicants. Newsis and Hankook Ilbo describe an increase of more than 50,000, while Seoul Shinmun says more than 50,000 students applied.
- Lee's description of the change as the effect of just one year of regional balanced development policy, and his remark that things will improve noticeably in many areas. Reported only by Newsis.