Civic Group Files Public Audit Request Over "190,000 Housing Units Missing" in Ministry of Land Data... "Cause of Statistical Error Must Be Revealed"

Civil society has filed a public interest audit request with the Board of Audit and Inspection regarding the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's statistical errors in last year's housing construction performance and urged a thorough investigation and the establishment of measures to prevent recurrence.

On the morning of the 22nd, at the Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice in Jongno-gu, Seoul, during the press conference requesting a public audit of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport for the omission of 190,000 housing construction records in 2023, Professor Im Jaeman of Sejong University (left) is speaking about the issues with the Ministry's housing statistics management system and the omission in supply.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 22nd at 10 a.m., the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy's Livelihood Hope Headquarters and the Livelihood Economy Research Institute held a press conference at the Areumdri Hall in Jongno-gu, Seoul, to announce this.

They called for the Board of Audit and Inspection to investigate and establish measures to prevent recurrence regarding ▲ the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's failure to correct and announce the statistical errors in housing construction performance discovered around January ▲ the Ministry officials' citation of the undercounted statistics ▲ the announcement of large-scale supply measures based on the erroneous data.

Professor Lim Jaeman of Sejong University's Department of Real Estate criticized, “Despite the Ministry announcing supply measures based on undercounted statistics, it continues to pursue existing policies,” adding, “I cannot understand the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport maintaining existing policies without considering the possibility of oversupply.”

Ahn Jingul, director of the Livelihood Economy Research Institute, said, “It is unacceptable that the Ministry announced the statistics three months after knowing about the omissions while former ministers, vice ministers, and senior officials of the Ministry are on trial for alleged manipulation of housing price statistics,” and stressed, “A thorough investigation must be conducted.” He continued, “The Ministry's policy credibility has hit rock bottom,” and argued, “The Board of Audit and Inspection must promptly clarify the raised suspicions through an audit, and strict punishments must be enforced alongside investigations by the prosecution and police to prevent recurrence.”