Jokyuil Jinju Mayor, 'Thanks to All Local Residents for Their Efforts to Protect LH'

Following the 2021 LH New Recruitment, All Requested Results Achieved

Volunteer groups are conducting an opposition campaign in Jungang-dong, Jinju-si, Gyeongnam.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] It has been finally confirmed that the organizational restructuring plan to separate the functions of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), which was promoted amid the concerns and worries of local residents, has been scrapped through the efforts of the local community.

On the 3rd, during the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's work report, the innovation plan was finalized, confirming that LH will maintain its current organizational structure while pushing for high-intensity reforms to prevent employee speculation and block misconduct.

Local residents who have been anxiously working to ‘protect LH’ for the past two years welcomed this decision.

Since the LH scandal began in March 2021 when the Minbyun (Lawyers for a Democratic Society) and People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy raised suspicions of land speculation by LH, the government announced an LH innovation plan in June of the same year aimed at restoring trust and preventing recurrence. The plan to separate LH’s subsidiaries sparked public outrage in the local community.

At that time, public dissatisfaction with the government’s real estate policy was high, and when misconduct by some LH employees occurred, the Prime Minister advocated for strong reforms, even mentioning the ‘dismantling of LH.’

The majority of civic groups, including Jinju City, Jinju Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Jinju YMCA, agreed on measures to eradicate real estate speculation and prevent recurrence related to the LH scandal but strongly opposed the unilateral dismantling of LH, which had settled in the Gyeongnam Jinju Innovation City for national balanced development, without gathering local public opinion.

The Gyeongnam Jinju Innovation City (LH) Protection Civic Movement Headquarters, composed of businesspeople and civic groups, was launched. On June 7, 2021, Jinju Mayor Cho Gyu-il began a solo protest in front of the government office building, the Blue House, and the National Assembly, which continued for 10 weeks with relay solo protests in Seoul, protests in front of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and statements from 52 social organizations, all voicing opposition to the dismantling of LH throughout the region.

Local lawmakers also pointed out the LH innovation plan, which did not reflect local public opinion, during open National Assembly public hearings and government audits, demanding the creation of an LH innovation plan that incorporates local views.

As a result, the government did not announce an organizational restructuring plan at the level of dismantling LH in October of that year and stepped back by announcing a plan to reduce personnel gradually by 2025.

Then, everyone actively worked to recruit new employees so that LH could smoothly perform its original role not only in the local community but also nationally even after the personnel reduction.

Mayor Cho met consecutively with Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and the 1st Vice Minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, arguing that it was unrealistic to reduce existing personnel while recruiting new employees and proposed proceeding with LH’s new recruitment through separate quota recognition.

Local youth and the Federation of University Student Councils also promoted statements and solo protests for LH’s new recruitment, and regional university presidents, including Kwon Soon-ki, president of Gyeongsang National University, adopted a joint petition requesting the continuation of LH’s new recruitment.

Thanks to these efforts, in December 2021, the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced an innovation plan recognizing a separate quota apart from LH’s personnel reduction plan and allowed the recruitment of 250 new LH employees.

Following the announcement of partial function transfer and personnel reduction in the first LH innovation plan in 2021, the second innovation plan announced on January 3, 2023, confirmed the scrapping of the LH function separation organizational restructuring plan, marking the end of Jinju citizens’ long journey to protect LH.

Mayor Cho said, “As a result of the united efforts of citizens, local lawmakers, and civic groups, we have fully protected LH and achieved all the results we demanded. I hope LH will continue to perform its original national role and strive to gain the hearts of local residents who wish for its ongoing innovation.”