Jang Dong-hyeok on cigarette and liquor tax hikes: "You give 100 won and take 1,000 won back?"

[Financial News] Jang Dong-hyeok, leader of the People Power Party (PPP), predicted on the 30th that the government and ruling party would draw up a supplementary budget to secure victory in the June 3 local elections, then raise taxes after the vote.
At the supreme council meeting held at the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea that day, Jang referred to media reports on hikes in cigarette prices and liquor taxes. He argued, "Before the election, they plan to scatter cash through a supplementary budget to buy votes, and once the election is over, they intend to claw back dozens of times more through a tax bomb," adding, "This is a government that gives 100 won and takes 1,000 won back."
He criticized the government for saying it is not currently reviewing such measures, commenting, "That only means not right now; in the end, they will raise them." He went on, "President Lee Jae-myung of South Korea floated the idea of a sugar tax, then backed off when there was a backlash. During the campaign, he said he would not use taxes to bring down housing prices, but now he openly talks about raising the Holding Tax. In the end, they are just waiting for the local elections to be over."
He continued, "If, on top of high inflation, a weak currency, and high interest rates, a tax bomb also drops, people’s livelihoods will be exhausted and the economy will collapse," appealing for support by saying, "Only by decisively judging the Lee Jae-myung administration in the local elections can we put an end to predatory politics that empty the people’s pockets."
Song Eon-seok, floor leader of the PPP, criticized the government’s plan to draft a 25 trillion won supplementary budget based on excess tax revenue as a "dangerous idea."
Song said, "A prolonged Iran war is highly likely to lead to an economic downturn, reduced tax revenue, and a contraction in the semiconductor industry," adding, "In these conditions, expanding fiscal spending based on temporary tax receipts is a very irresponsible choice that will only worsen future tax shortfalls and fiscal instability."
He went on, "The Lee Jae-myung government is pushing through a supplementary budget under the pretext of war, as if it were anxiously hoping that Donald John Trump, president of the United States of America (US), will not bring about an early ceasefire," and added, "In substance, it is forcing through an election-focused supplementary budget centered on cash handout policies such as the Consumption Coupon."
Song warned, "A hasty, poorly designed supplementary budget built like a sandcastle on rosy assumptions will not save the economy; it could bring an even greater crisis sooner," and pledged, "We will do our utmost to make this a survival-oriented supplementary budget that protects industry and people’s livelihoods, not an election-driven cash giveaway."
haeram@fnnews.com Lee Hae-ram Reporter