Presidential nominee Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea firmly distanced himself from the Moon Jae-in administration, accusing it of being reckless and failing to address the difficulties of Koreans during the pandemic.

During a TV debate held Thursday among four major presidential candidates, Lee said the Moon administration had made small business owners shoulder the burden of taking care of the public.

"Even at this very moment, somebody out there is dying," Lee said. "In this difficult situation, the country shifted the burden of responsibility for its people to the hands of small business owners."

While Lee and Moon are both members of the Democratic Party, Lee has for months publicly distanced himself from the president, in an apparent bid to stay clear of any effect from the public ire over the missteps and failures of the Moon administration.

Lee had emphasized he will be different from Moon, attempting to appeal to politically neutral voters who do not support the president.

During the TV debate, Lee also denounced the Moon administration for failing to control real estate prices, saying the government overly suppressed supplying more housing units and rigged the demand for real estate unnaturally, thereby causing the housing price crisis.