President Lee convened an unscheduled economic meeting at the presidential office of Cheong Wa Dae on Sunday (Dec. 14), a day after the 2009 budget bill passed the National Assembly.

The expanded economic emergency meeting was attended by 14 ranking officials, including the Prime Minister and the Minister of Strategy and Finance.

President Lee, who finished his tour to Fukuoka for the tripartite Korea, China and Japan summit meeting on Saturday (Dec. 13), emphasized at the meeting an early execution of the budget bill and ordered immediate package planning for low income earners.

"The budget passage in the National Assembly was not easy this time. As such, the government should execute the budget as soon as possible for the people to feel firsthand the effects of stimulus packages," said the president. The government does not have to wait until early next year to execute the budget, but should get projects rolling even in December when they are ready, added the president.

The president emphasized that the government should spend the budget where it is really necessary and urgent and should minimize complicated bureaucratic procedures that hamper efficient execution of the budget.

"The government should take full responsibility for those who are in extreme poverty. It should immediately plan measures to support their welfare and child rearing."

Lee asked the ministers at the meeting to consider the problem of extreme poverty as the number one priority during their term in office.

"The government should try to execute the budget for Social Overhead Capital-related projects at an early date next year and simplify relevant administrative procedures. It should also foresee the projects'' long-term effects on environment, tourism and culture," said the president.

The government''s expenditure should be spent in a productive way for the country to have challenges turned into opportunities in a difficult time, the president stressed.