Urgent National Land Committee Inquiry on the 9th Triggered by LH
Opposition Criticizes 'Freezing Private Development While Allowing Speculation in Public Sector'
Ruling Party Says 'Cheating and Privilege Must Be Eradicated This Time'
[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] At the National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee's urgent inquiry regarding the land speculation allegations involving Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), the opposition strongly criticized the government, saying, "It is a serious issue of speculation occurring in a government that tightly restricts private development while only allowing public development." The ruling party emphasized future responses, stating, "We must turn this incident into an opportunity to investigate unfair practices and privileges and thoroughly root out speculation allegations."
On the 9th, lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties criticized Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Byun Chang-heum's remark that "it does not seem that the investment was made with prior knowledge of development information." Sim Sang-jung, a Justice Party lawmaker, said, "The problem lies in the minister's usual perception. Would someone who did not know development information in advance take out a 5.8 billion won loan, split it up, and even have employees on local duty come from afar to buy land?" She added, "What more can we expect from a minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport who is insensitive to public sentiment and speculation? That is why the public thinks he should resign."
In response, Minister Byun bowed his head and said, "I sincerely apologize if my remarks appeared to condone LH employees' speculation." He added, "During my tenure, I emphasized transparency and integrity as the reasons for the existence of public enterprises, but it seems my intentions were not conveyed. I feel sorry about that."
Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Byeon Chang-heum is attending an emergency briefing on LH speculation allegations held at the National Assembly on the 9th./Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@
Kim Hee-guk, a People Power Party lawmaker, said, "They have been saying for four years that they would crack down on real estate speculation, but now they say they will strengthen control devices. What exactly have they done?" He emphasized, "Under current law, it is difficult to punish under the Anti-Corruption Act since profits have not yet been realized. If there is suspicion of a crime, it must be thoroughly rooted out to the point of ruin." Kim Sang-hoon, also from the same party, pointed out, "Since the Moon Jae-in administration, private development has been tightly restricted with regulations, real estate transactions have been restricted, and the government has consistently pursued state-led public institution development policies. Now, an employee responsible for public development in such a government speculated using advance information? This is a tremendous issue."
The ruling party focused on strengthening investigations and passing the LH Prevention Act as future responses. Jin Sung-jun, a Democratic Party lawmaker, urged, "Minister, please approach the investigation of real estate, speculation, and unfair practices with determination to uncover the truth, prevent recurrence, and boldly give up your ministerial position if necessary." He emphasized, "We should propose dispatching prosecutors to the joint investigation team to ensure appropriate investigations." He also said, "We must establish a real estate transaction analysis agency to examine areas that have been less supervised compared to stock trading." Minister Byun responded, "I will review all possible aspects to ensure the investigation proceeds well."
Park Sang-hyuk, from the same party, asked, "Do you feel comprehensive and moral responsibility for the LH land speculation allegations?" Minister Byun replied, "I feel a heavy sense of responsibility." Regarding whether it is possible to recover speculative gains, Minister Byun said, "Currently, there are strict punishment regulations for cases using internal confidential information. We are exploring ways to recover unjust gains by utilizing all regulations." He further explained that the interpretation of 'work-related secrets' varies, but since there is precedent that indirectly obtained information can also be considered, recovery of unjust gains is possible.
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