Im Gi-sang, Representative of the Automobile Citizens' Coalition, "Recruitment of 300 National Audit Petitioners Starts Today"
[Asia Economy Reporter Yu Je-hoon] As discussions on opening the used car market have been at a standstill for the third consecutive year, an automobile-related civic group has decided to file a national audit request with the Board of Audit and Inspection targeting the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the supervising department.
On the morning of the 13th, Lim Gi-sang, the representative of the Automobile Citizens' Coalition, attended a seminar titled "Trends and Implications of the Used Car Market from the Consumer's Perspective," hosted by the consumer policy watchdog Consumer Watch at the Forest Vision Center in Yeouido, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. He stated, "We are pushing for a national audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection against the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, which has been postponing the decision on whether to open the used car market for three years," adding, "To this end, we have started recruiting 300 national audit petitioners from today."
The issue of opening the used car market was triggered in 2019 when the Win-Win Growth Committee judged that the used car sales business was 'inappropriate' for the small business livelihood-type suitable industry category. Since then, there has been little progress for three years. The completed car and used car industries attempted to sign a win-win agreement in June through mediation by the Democratic Party's Euljiro Committee, but despite about three months of negotiations, it ended in vain. At the end of last month, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups also tried to hold negotiations again over three days, but the talks ultimately broke down.
Representative Lim emphasized, "Despite the chaotic situation due to COVID-19, we have been conducting an online signature campaign urging the complete opening of the used car market since April," and added, "As shown by the participation of more than 100,000 consumers in just 28 days after the campaign started, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups must clearly recognize that consumers desperately want the used car market to be opened."
Meanwhile, experts from various fields attending the seminar also urged for the prompt opening of the market. Professor Kwon Yong-joo of Kookmin University said, "The important factor in allowing large corporations to enter the used car market is the voice of consumers," and added, "Since the discussions started more than two years ago, it is time to reach a conclusion. The voices of consumers demanding this are also strong."
Kim Joo-hong, Executive Director of the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA), also stated, "If the domestic completed car industry enters the used car market, the market size is expected to more than double due to increased market transparency and consumer trust, and new job creation will also be possible," emphasizing, "It is now necessary to promptly hold a review committee for livelihood-type suitable industries composed of private experts to fairly, transparently, and objectively decide whether to designate the used car sales business as a livelihood-type suitable industry."
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