"Living on a Tilted Playing Field for Life" 2030 Generation 'Boiling' Over the LH Scandal

Suspicion of Pre-Purchase Before Announcement of Some New Town Sites
"Is There a Law Against LH Employees Investing?" Controversy Over Defense
"Truly Shocking," "Must Punish Severely," 2030 Generation Expresses 'Disappointment'
Ruling Party: "We Will Recover Profits from Public Officials' Real Estate Speculation"

On the morning of the 4th, at the entrance of the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) headquarters in Chungmugong-dong, Jinju-si, Gyeongnam. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] As allegations have surfaced that some employees and their families of the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) made advance purchases of land where the new towns of Gwangmyeong and Siheung in Gyeonggi Province are to be developed, anger is growing among the 20s and 30s generations. Critics point out that these speculation allegations by public officials cause a great sense of deprivation among young people who are already struggling to secure their own homes. Voices are also rising in the political sphere calling for strict punishment of public officials who engaged in unfair speculation using insider information.

◆ "Is there a law forbidding LH employees from investing?" Adding fuel to the fire of anger

The allegations were first revealed on the 2nd by some civic groups such as the Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun) and the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy. These civic groups held a press conference and raised suspicions that about 10 LH employees engaged in advance speculation worth approximately 10 billion KRW before the announcement of the designation of the Gwangmyeong-Siheung 3rd new town district.

According to their analysis of land registries, from April 2018 to June last year, 14 LH employees and their spouses and families purchased a total of 10 plots totaling 23,028㎡ (about 7,000 pyeong) for around 10 billion KRW. Notably, this period coincides with when Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Byeon Changheum served as LH president (April 2019 to December 2020).

Land near the recycling facility in Gwarim-dong, Siheung-si, Gyeonggi-do, where allegations of speculation by LH employees have been raised. Saplings were planted on-site on the 4th. / Photo by Yonhap News

Related to these allegations, controversy grew when an LH employee made remarks seemingly defending such speculative behavior. On the 4th, an LH employee posted a message on the anonymous workplace community 'Blind' that appeared to support the speculation allegations. Blind is a community where posts can only be made after verification through a company email account.

In the post, the employee stated, "Is there a law that forbids LH employees from investing in real estate?" and added, "Whether they used insider information to speculate unfairly or invested based on their own study is a matter for the courts or prosecutors to decide."

Another employee commented, "These days, with people pulling together all their resources ('Youngkkeun' - gathering all their soul to raise investment funds) to invest in real estate, among over 10,000 LH employees, some who bought land in Gwangmyeong might have just gotten lucky this time," and added, "It's noisy as if they definitely abused insider information."

◆ "Struggling on a tilted playing field" 2030 generation expresses 'sense of deprivation'

Given the situation, anger among the 2030 generation toward the LH speculation allegations is intensifying. They feel a sense of deprivation as wealth and assets seem to be given not as a reward for legitimate labor but only to those with power and insider information.

On the 4th, Jang Chung-mo, Vice President of LH, along with other LH officials, bowed their heads in a public apology. / Photo by Yonhap News

A 20-something office worker, Mr. A, said, "If the allegations turn out to be true, it will be truly shocking," and added, "I believed I was living in a world where hard work would be rewarded, but maybe I was just struggling on a tilted playing field," expressing frustration.

Another office worker, Mr. B (32), said, "This is outright cheating and unfairness. Some people work overtime and gather all their resources just to rent a single room, while others make huge money just because they are public enterprise employees. This is unacceptable," and insisted, "For the sake of social justice and market principles, public officials involved in this incident must be severely punished."

Calls were also made to strengthen the conflict of interest prevention system for public officials. Office worker Mr. C (28) said, "It was shocking that some LH employees regarded buying land in areas designated as new towns in advance as natural," and added, "Isn't it time to comprehensively review corruption issues in the public sector?"

◆ Ruling party: "LH speculation prevention law to be prioritized in March National Assembly"

Amid growing public outrage over the speculation allegations, the ruling party announced plans to push for legislative measures to prevent recurrence of such incidents.

Kim Tae-nyeon, Floor Leader of the Democratic Party of Korea / Photo by Yonhap News

Kim Tae-nyeon, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, said at the Central Election Committee meeting on the 8th, "We deeply feel the public's anger and disappointment over the LH employees' speculation allegations," and emphasized, "This is an incident that undermines the sincerity of the party and government’s real estate policies. We take it very seriously and will show practical actions and results rather than just words."

He continued, "We will swiftly push for legislation to prevent recurrence of public officials' speculation," and added, "The so-called LH speculation prevention law will be treated as the top priority bill in the March National Assembly."

He also explained, "Just like with financial crimes, we will recover speculative profits made by public officials," and said, "Assemblyman Moon Jin-seok has proposed a bill to impose fines three to five times the speculative profits, and Assemblyman Park Sang-hyuk is also preparing to propose a bill."