ID :
200798
Fri, 08/12/2011 - 05:05
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/200798
The shortlink copeid
Lee to cast absentee ballot in referendum on Seoul's free lunch program
(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with Lee's plan to cast absentee ballot; CHANGES headline)
SEOUL (Yonhap) - President Lee Myung-bak will cast an absentee ballot in the upcoming vote on Seoul's free school lunch program, his spokesman said Friday, a move that underlines the significance he attaches to the poll seen as a referendum on South Korea's debate over welfare and populism.
The Seoul city government is set to hold a vote on Aug. 24 to ask residents whether to move forward with the opposition-led policy of providing all students with free lunch.
Mayor Oh Se-hoon and his ruling Grand National Party have denounced the measure as a populist policy weighing on government finances. Instead, they have suggested providing free lunch only to students in need.
Opposition parties argue poor students who receive free lunch could be stigmatized at school.
Lee won't be able to vote in person because of scheduling conflicts, so he has decided to cast an absentee ballot sometime next week, presidential spokesman Park Jeong-ha said, declining to elaborate.
"The president will take part in the vote as a citizen," Park said.
The move appears to show the importance Lee attaches to the vote, though the spokesman said Lee has made no comment on the vote.
Lee has repeatedly voiced concern about politicians putting forth a series of costly policy proposals to woo voters ahead of next year's general elections. On Tuesday, Lee said that the country should guard against populist policies or it could face Greece's fate, hit by a debt crisis caused by excessive welfare programs.
Aides said Lee believes the ruling camp should unite to win the referendum as he sees it as a chance to put the brakes on populism.
"The president considers the outcome of the upcoming free lunch vote as a referendum on whether the chain of populism will continue or break off," a senior presidential aide said. "The president's intention is firm that (the ruling camp) should win the vote."
SEOUL (Yonhap) - President Lee Myung-bak will cast an absentee ballot in the upcoming vote on Seoul's free school lunch program, his spokesman said Friday, a move that underlines the significance he attaches to the poll seen as a referendum on South Korea's debate over welfare and populism.
The Seoul city government is set to hold a vote on Aug. 24 to ask residents whether to move forward with the opposition-led policy of providing all students with free lunch.
Mayor Oh Se-hoon and his ruling Grand National Party have denounced the measure as a populist policy weighing on government finances. Instead, they have suggested providing free lunch only to students in need.
Opposition parties argue poor students who receive free lunch could be stigmatized at school.
Lee won't be able to vote in person because of scheduling conflicts, so he has decided to cast an absentee ballot sometime next week, presidential spokesman Park Jeong-ha said, declining to elaborate.
"The president will take part in the vote as a citizen," Park said.
The move appears to show the importance Lee attaches to the vote, though the spokesman said Lee has made no comment on the vote.
Lee has repeatedly voiced concern about politicians putting forth a series of costly policy proposals to woo voters ahead of next year's general elections. On Tuesday, Lee said that the country should guard against populist policies or it could face Greece's fate, hit by a debt crisis caused by excessive welfare programs.
Aides said Lee believes the ruling camp should unite to win the referendum as he sees it as a chance to put the brakes on populism.
"The president considers the outcome of the upcoming free lunch vote as a referendum on whether the chain of populism will continue or break off," a senior presidential aide said. "The president's intention is firm that (the ruling camp) should win the vote."
