Lee Jun Seok, the elected leader of the Reform New Party, stated during a lecture at Seoul National University that “some stupid person” had begun to increase the number of medical students. This can be seen as a remark directed toward South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.
After delivering an English lecture on “An Irresistible Future” at Seoul National University’s Graduate School of International Studies on May 27, he addressed a question about plans to revive the scientific community affected by R&D budget cuts. He pointed out, “The imminent threat to Korean science is the foolish decision to increase the number of medical students.”
In response to a question about the vision for the scientific community, he said, “Assuming that 60% of the 200,000 test-takers are in science, there are 4,800 top-tier (top 4%) students, and all of them could go to medical school,” and “If this ratio is maintained, there will be a shortage of people responsible for science and technology.”
Then, seemingly targeting President Yoon, he claimed, “The reason he increased the medical school quota is simply because parents want to send their children to medical school.”
He then criticized, “The policy decision of President Yoon, who allowed such a thing to happen, is stupid and should be feared.”
In the early part of his lecture, he said, “In Korea, people miss the glory of the industrial age, but President Yoon has never done anything for industrialization in his life.” He also said, “Even if you look at his resume, he graduated from Seoul National University and became president after passing nine civil service exams.”
Regarding Lee Jae Myung, the leader of the Democratic Party, he claimed, “He was a candidate with no relevance to democratization.” He also pointed out the “disappointing situation” that “even two years ago, the election was about who would go to jail, and it is still ongoing.”
In response to a question about drafting women to become professionals such as lawyers and doctors, he argued, “There is some validity from the perspective of fairness.”
He also added, “As a conservative politician, I prefer not to place additional burdens on residents,” and “The ultimate goal is to eliminate conscription and stop people from suffering due to military service.”
