Lee Jae-myung: "I Will Never Tolerate Illegal Subcontracting and Prime Contractor's Evasion of Responsibility"

Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung is talking with the bereaved families of the victims of the building collapse disaster in Dong-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City.

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, strongly warned that if he becomes president, he will never tolerate illegal subcontracting or the primary contractor's evasion of responsibility.

On the 28th, regarding the police's announcement of the interim investigation results on the demolition building collapse disaster that occurred in Dong-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City, Governor Lee said, "The police judged that the accident was caused by a combination of reckless demolition methods based on safety negligence, violations of duty of care by supervisors, primary contractors, and subcontractors' safety managers," pointing out, "In short, it is a clear 'man-made disaster.'"

He continued, "It is heartbreaking to see such a backward disaster occur even though South Korea has reached the ranks of advanced countries," and criticized, "These disasters repeat because the benefits gained from breaking the law are greater than the losses from punishment and sanctions. The same applies to this case, where despite recognizing the illegal re-subcontracting, the circumstances of condoning it were revealed, but the punishment for the construction company Hyundai Development Company is minimal."

Governor Lee stated, "To fundamentally solve the problem, criminal responsibility must be strictly imposed for legal violations, and strong punitive measures should be taken to prevent any benefits," adding, "Along with this, thorough crackdowns by administrative agencies must follow."

He also advocated for sharing labor inspection authority with local governments.

Governor Lee said, "Currently, the central government holds labor inspection authority, and the number of labor inspectors is small, making thorough crackdowns difficult," and added, "The number of labor inspectors should be significantly increased, or labor inspection authority should be shared so that local governments can conduct inspections."

Furthermore, he urged, "I have repeatedly proposed sharing labor inspection authority to the National Assembly and central government, but no results have been seen yet, which is regrettable," and emphasized, "If time is delayed, the damage will directly affect the general public, so please do not postpone any longer and take prompt action now."

Governor Lee also said, "In January, the Serious Accidents Punishment Act was enacted to protect the lives and safety of the people from serious accidents, but this collapse disaster falls into a blind spot of the law," adding, "The law should be promptly amended to prevent serious accidents occurring at construction sites, including demolition work, to ensure the safety of workers and citizens."

In particular, he said, "I cannot forget the appeals of the bereaved families and injured relatives I met during my visit to Gwangju on the 24th," and lamented, "Although several tens of days have passed since the disaster, I felt very sorry seeing that punishment of those responsible, compensation for damages, and institutional issues have not yet been resolved, causing them great hardship."

Finally, Governor Lee promised, "We must wipe away their tears, and that is what politics should do," and pledged, "I will make every effort possible to conduct a thorough investigation, punish those responsible, provide prompt compensation, and establish systems to prevent recurrence."