The Blue House has repeatedly refuted media reports accusing the delay of securing vaccines, but reports are continuing to bite the tail.
The start was the Chosun Ilbo and JoongAng Ilbo on the 22nd. Chosun Ilbo([단독] “How many times did you say that the vaccine was secured?” 文, belatedly rebuked the staff) reported that President Moon Jae-in rebuked the staff only after the delay in obtaining the vaccine. The JoongAng Ilbo (“Wait a minute”… Vaccine Directly No. 2 to President Wen, was useless) said that President Moon did not react immediately after hearing that it was necessary to secure vaccines and treatments quickly in February and June.
On this day, the Blue House spokesman Kang Min-seok refuted the reports of the Chosun and Central Korea, even revealing the president’s private remarks. Summarizing and delivering the president’s instructions from April to December, he said, “This is the summary of the president’s vaccination-related actions to a’minimum’ degree.” Examples of the spokesperson’s “I want to reveal the facts” are as follows.
△April 9th, hosted at the Korea Institute of Pasteur Korea in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, “Corona Treatment and Vaccine Development Industry-Academic Cooperation Joint Meeting” “We will definitely help develop therapeutics and vaccines.” Agreement to expand treatment and development cooperation △April 12 announced the formation of a pan-governmental support group for corona treatment vaccine development under the direction of President Moon. Emphasis on the Committee △ On July 20th, the President’s Chief and Aides Meeting “The launch of the Smart Korea Fund will serve as vaccine and treatment support.” △On July 21, the internal staff meeting, SK Biosciences decided to consign and produce AstraZeneca vaccine. After receiving a report of the facts, he was asked to “supply sufficient supplies” △At the State Council meeting on September 8, “Please increase the ability to respond to infectious diseases by supporting the development of a new vaccine under the National Institute of Infectious Diseases under the National Institute of Health.” △September 15 internal staff meeting “ Secure a sufficient amount of vaccine through Cobox and global pharmaceutical companies.” △On October 15th, visit SK Biosciences in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, “SK Biosciences discusses consignment production with global vaccine companies such as NovaVax such as AstraZeneca. However, if a part of the production can be supplied to us first, it will be of great help in securing a stable vaccine… Even if the corona passes, develop until the end for vaccine sovereignty.” △November 18th, Incheon Songdo Yonsei International Campus Bio Industry Event “Vaccine treatment development will show progress in the antibody treatment and plasma treatment market as soon as possible. Meeting “Do your best to secure it.” △November 30 internal staff meeting “Secure the quantity to the extent that it is said to be excessive. Don’t think roughly.”
However, the clarification of the Blue House raised another question. The president has ordered the securing of the vaccine several times, but the staff or authorities have not followed it. Immediately after the Blue House clarification, JTBC (“President Moon instructs several times to secure’vaccines’… staffs only’positive information’”) said, “Since the fall, President Moon has instructed several times to secure vaccines even if he is in debt. It was reported that there were explanations from passport officials, saying, “Only a report has been posted that is progressing well.
In the case of the Chosun Ilbo, which the President reported as’procrastination’, the next day, the 23rd, argued that the reality of the government’s slow response to the introduction of a corona vaccine is being revealed one by one[단독] The president ordered the introduction of overseas vaccines only in September, and the public officials who initiated them in November). “Nine of the 13 President Moon’s remarks and actions were related to the development of the corona vaccine (7 cases) and the consignment production of SK Bioscience’s AstraZeneca vaccine (2 cases). It has been emphasizing “independent development of vaccines and treatments” and so-called “K vaccines” rather than “securing overseas vaccines” through international cooperation and imports. “We emphasized self-development of vaccines and treatments, leaving Pfizer and Modena behind. It is pointed out that the’all-in’ to the Zeneca vaccine is also due to overconfidence of K quarantine.”
The JoongAng Ilbo (“I’d rather be a traitor”…the vaccine TF that missed Golden Time) raised additional suspicions. “At the end of June, Kim Sang-jo, head of the Blue House Policy Officer, formed a Vaccine Task Force (TF) team, and he left the TF to the working-level and lost himself,” he argues, a’high-ranking government official’.
Spokesman Kang said, “The Pan-Government Committee for Corona 19 Treatment and Vaccine, which was launched on April 24, has been discussing and promoting vaccine development and introduction. He said, “The report that the Blue House has left its hands on the vaccine TF is not true.”
There is also a view that the delay in obtaining a vaccine was inevitable in the medical field. Lee Jae-gap, a professor of infectious medicine at Hallym University, appeared on the CBS radio (Kim Hyun-jung’s news show) that day, claiming that until July last July, AstraZeneca’s research was the earliest point in the government’s judgment. “AstraZeneca expected the end of the third phase of the study in October, but the clinical trial was stopped in the middle and was postponed to December. In the meantime, Pfizer and Modena caught up and reversed it, which made it very difficult to judge the government. It is a mistake of consequential judgment”.
There is also criticism that conservative media focused on criticism of the President and the Blue House undermined trust in quarantine policies through unreasonable reporting. For example, in the case of the JoongAng Ilbo report that’the president did not hear direct words about securing the vaccine,’ the interviewee issued a statement saying, “Distortion report”. Lee Jong-gu, a professor at Seoul National University College of Medicine (Chairman of the Infectious Diseases and Disaster Response Health and Medical Innovation Task Force of the President’s Directive Policy Planning Committee), said in a statement on the 23rd that the expression “did not work” and “useless” is different from the facts. “We express our deep concern about the reality that the truth is distorted due to unsuccessful media reports.”
However, there is a side that focuses on media criticism rather than explaining clearly about securing vaccines in the first place, or responses that leave room for interpretation are empowering the suspicion. There is a limit to resolving doubts in the way of saying only the content that you want to reveal while denying the theory of responsibility and practicality. This can be confirmed in the conversation between key officials and reporters of the Blue House on the 23rd. When asked,’Is there been an active securing stance since the internal staff meeting on September 15?’
At the end of the briefing at the time, the Blue House said, “As the President mentioned at the invitational meeting for the fifth part, it is somewhat inevitable for the producing country that provided financial and administrative support to the vaccine to inoculate its country first.” As it is known that Asian countries, such as Singapore, Qatar, and Japan, quickly secured vaccine supplies, this argument can be easily refuted. If a number of media have already pointed out this, but there is a position that’there is nothing to explain’, another battle is likely to take place.
In the midst of this, the ruling party’s attitude to the criticism of’the press’ makes the explanation of the Blue House like a confrontation with the critics. “The opposition party and some media are mobilizing unfounded ghost stories and distorted statistics to promote public anxiety,” said Nak-yeon Lee, the leader of the Democratic Party. Eun-hee issued a warning to the media, saying, “I hope that the hospital administration office and the spokesperson group will respond firmly based on the facts and inform the whole country through the party organization.”
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