Controversy Reignites Over Cash-Stuffed Envelopes in Imsil County Chief Election

This method, aiming to secure votes by offering meals to constituents, is pointed out as a typical case of money-driven elections. In the past, there have been attempts to undermine election fairness through similar means, such as providing cash or treating voters to meals.

The speaker mentioned, "Whether they were supporters or not, about 90 people were gathered and eating when the Election Commission and police raided the place and caught them." This was an unprecedented incident, marking the first time such an act of buying meals during a local election was caught on record.

With concerns about such misconduct, the candidates at the time strongly urged the Democratic Party's central committee to dispatch an ethics audit team. The speaker conveyed the desperate situation, saying, "You demanded a Democratic Party ethics audit. Yes, we demanded it tremendously. Please come down. Please just come and see the truth." The candidates repeatedly requested that the party directly intervene to uncover the truth of the incident.

The speaker explained, "Someone went to a house in broad daylight and distributed a cash envelope with 200,000 won, which was caught on CCTV and reported nationally on the 9 PM news." This incident caused a significant stir, to the extent of being broadcast on the national 9 PM news.

The speaker recounted the situation, saying, "Supreme Council Member Cheong-rae Chung ordered a suspension of the primary and an ethics audit from Busan, and then two people from the central party came down the day after tomorrow and interviewed me and others." Accordingly, two members of the ethics audit team from the central party were dispatched to interview local stakeholders.

However, the investigation into the cash envelope incident is reportedly facing difficulties. Rumors are circulating in the Imsil region that the investigation cannot proceed properly because the person who distributed the money is currently absent. New 탐사 pointed out that the absence of the person who distributed the money is making the investigation difficult, and suspicions are growing about the party that benefited from this incident.

There is also strong criticism regarding the effectiveness of the central party's ethics audit. The speaker pointed out that while Supreme Council Member Cheong-rae Chung sent ethics audit teams to various regions, including Jeonbuk Province, Jeonnam Province, Jinan, and Imsil, most of these investigations were merely superficial. "I must once again blame Supreme Council Member Cheong-rae Chung. During the last election, similar incidents occurred in Jeonbuk, Jeonnam, Jinan, and Imsil, and Supreme Council Member Cheong-rae Chung sent ethics audit teams to many places," the speaker said, criticizing the inadequacy of investigations, such as short visits only when incidents were reported in the news. This leads to criticism that the central party's ethics audit is more of a show for public opinion rather than an effort to uncover the truth of the incidents.

This recording includes circumstances where a caller changed their stance, abandoning their previously supported candidate to endorse Han Deok-soo. New 탐사 stated, "At that time, there was a call with content virtually requesting the distribution of money for candidate Han Deok-soo, and we will listen to it together for a moment," implying that this recording is a crucial clue to the incident.

Notably, this call was made the day before candidate Kim Jin-myeong declared support for Han Deok-soo, offering a glimpse into the complex dynamics of the election.

The recording also contains negative evaluations of candidate Kim Jin-myeong's election methods. The caller stated, "Jin-myeong worked hard, but it's not working if he doesn't spend money. He should have spent some money. He should have given money to the district party chairman or Park Hee-seong, but he was too caught up in the polls, and that's why this happened." He pointed to Kim Jin-myeong's failure to spend enough election funds as the cause of his defeat. He strongly criticized that Kim Jin-myeong should have spent money on key figures like the district party chairman or Park Hee-seong, and that he lacked a practical election strategy, being overly focused on poll numbers.

New 탐사 explained the individuals in the released recording and the truth of the incident. According to New 탐사, the recording is a conversation between the person who directly delivered the money and a resident, and the person who delivered the money seems to have originally supported candidate Kim Jin-myeong, who was a preliminary candidate. New 탐사 stated, "This is a conversation between the person who directly delivered the money and a resident, and the person who delivered the money seems to have supported Kim Jin-myeong, who came out as a preliminary candidate. This is the first call the person giving the money made to the person receiving it." This can serve as crucial evidence as it was the first call made to the recipient just before the money delivery, and the police are also presumed to have already identified the individuals present at the money delivery scene.

New 탐사 mentioned, "Before this person delivered the money like this, the day before, he met with his brother, candidate Han Deok-soo, and a person with an official position in the Imsil local party, four of them in total," suggesting the possibility that the distribution of money was discussed at this meeting.

New 탐사 pointed out that the released phone conversation reveals the chronic election culture in the Imsil region. The dialogue between the callers includes remarks such as, "You must have money in Imsil. The one with money should do it, and for me, when election season comes, it's peak season. People without money shouldn't run as candidates." This shows that the distorted perception that elections are a reality where money is exchanged and that spending money is natural is prevalent in the local society. The attitude of viewing elections as a 'peak season' to gain personal profit is pointed out as a serious problem that undermines the fundamental principles of democracy.

New 탐사 explained, "Money was delivered, and it seems there was a CCTV at the delivery location. After that person finished the call, they went to meet the person they talked to and gave them a 200,000 won envelope. That was caught on CCTV and reported on the 9 PM news." As this CCTV footage was released to the media, the incident garnered national attention and caused a significant stir, being reported on the 9 PM news.

When the cash envelope delivery was caught on CCTV and reported in the media, an additional phone recording between the cash envelope deliverer and recipient was secured. New 탐사 described the situation at the time, stating, "When the cash envelope delivery was discovered on CCTV and reported in all the media, everything turned upside down." This suggests that the recording contains additional circumstances beyond a simple money transfer. In particular, attempts to dilute the connection between the cash envelope incident and the county chief candidate were observed in this call.

The deliverer told the recipient, "Brother, it's me. Did you eat well with the kids with the money I gave you? No, I didn't. Why not? Eat it. I gave it to you, my sibling, to eat with your kids because you worked hard for us upstairs." He claimed that the money was given personally for meals, irrelevant to the county chief. Conversely, the recipient appeared flustered, realizing they had been filmed by CCTV, and the deliverer continued the conversation as if to coordinate stories, downplaying the incident as 'nothing big.' Such a conversation can be interpreted as an attempt to belatedly fabricate an alibi after the incident occurred.

This is an attempt to belatedly package the incident as encouragement funds for the election campaign, escalating suspicions of 'muddying the waters' to obscure the essence of the incident.

At the center of this controversy were also inappropriate remarks made by the Democratic Party's leadership. New 탐사 reported, "I heard that the remark, 'Electing the head of a local self-governing body isn't about electing a saint, is it?' also came out," pointing out that such a statement was made as a reason to proceed with the primary election at the time. This remark, dismissing the election of a local head as merely choosing a professional and seemingly overlooking the high ethical standards and morality required of elected officials, is likely to draw criticism from the public.