Ha Jungwoo Faces "Hand-Brushing After Handshake" Controversy at Market... People Power Party: "Are Voters Like Insects?"

Ha Jungwoo Explains: "First Time Shaking Hands with Hundreds... My Hands Went Numb"

A scene of former Chief Ha Jung-woo shaking hands with merchants at Gupo Market, Buk-gu, Busan on the 29th and then brushing off his hands. SNS

The opposition parties have launched a coordinated attack, calling it an “insult to voters,” over the so-called “hand-brushing after handshake” controversy involving former Blue House Chief of Future AI Strategy Ha Jungwoo, who has effectively been nominated as the candidate for the Busan Buk-gap parliamentary by-election.

Previously, during his first visit to Busan, former Chief Ha was caught on camera at Gupo Market in Buk-gu, apparently rubbing or brushing off his hands after shaking hands with merchants, which sparked controversy.

Former Chief Ha Jung-woo visiting Gupo Market in Buk-gu, Busan on the 29th, shaking hands with merchants and then brushing his hands off. SNS

"Treating Voters Like Insects" "Deep-Rooted Elitism and Arrogance"... United Opposition Attack

On the 30th, Kim Jaewon, a Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, said at the Supreme Council meeting at the National Assembly, "Yesterday, former Chief Ha shook hands with several young merchants at the market, and there was a scene where he suddenly brushed his hands off as if something filthy had gotten on them," adding, "Former Chief Ha is someone who treats voters like insects."

Cho Yongsul, spokesperson for the People Power Party, also said in a statement that day, "Yesterday, former Chief Ha reversed his previous stance, received a parachute nomination, and visited Gupo Market," adding, "His first political move was to repeatedly wipe his hands after shaking hands with merchants." He continued, "I can't help but wonder if he also wiped his hands after shaking hands with powerful figures like President Lee Jaemyung and Representative Jeong Cheongrae," and said, "Politics that try to imitate the nobility after climbing the ladder of success cannot win the voters' support."

Former Supreme Council member Kim Jonghyuk also posted on Facebook, "When I saw Mr. Ha Jungwoo shake hands with a merchant at Gupo Market yesterday and then brush off his hands, at first I thought maybe something had just gotten on his hands or there was a reason," adding, "But if he genuinely believes he is an elite who shouldn't shake hands with market merchants, and sees himself as especially clean and pure, then it would be better for him to stick to lofty and grand discussions at the Blue House."

Park Minsik, also a preliminary candidate for Buk-gap in Busan and former Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, wrote on Facebook, "That deep-rooted elitism and arrogance, which unconsciously revealed itself by treating lifelong local residents as a 'different class' that can never mix with him, has come out."

Han Donghun, an independent candidate running in the same district and former People Power Party chairman, also said on Facebook that day, "I saw a current Democratic Party deputy spokesperson say on a broadcast, 'Ha Jungwoo's hand-brushing doesn't affect the overall trend,' and I have to ask the Democratic Party: 'Does that mean that ignoring the citizens of Buk-gu doesn't affect the trend?' He continued, "What exactly is this 'trend' that the Democratic Party thinks can ignore the citizens?"

Ha Jungwoo Explains: "First Time Shaking Hands with Hundreds... My Hands Went Numb"

As the controversy grew, former Chief Ha held a press conference at the Busan City Council to explain himself. He said, "It was my first time shaking hands with hundreds, nearly 1,000 people in a single day," adding, "Toward the end, my hands went numb. I think I unconsciously did that." He continued, "As someone with 'sigeun' in the Busan dialect, would I really have done that? Before that, I had shaken hands with many merchants wearing wet gloves," and added, "This kind of thing, I think, is the negativity of real-world politics."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.