"Land Connecting Yangpyeong Expressway Terminal, President's In-Laws Raise Black Goats for Compensation" [2024 National Audit]

Opposition Party: "Terminal Change Requires Reanalysis of Cost-Benefit"
Minister Park Sang-woo: "No Special Privileges or External Pressure"

Photo by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Press Corps

Opposition lawmakers raised attacks for the second consecutive year during the National Assembly audit targeting the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport regarding suspicions about the change of the terminus of the Yangpyeong Expressway. At the audit held at the Government Complex Sejong on the 7th, Rep. Bok Gi-wang of the Democratic Party of Korea said, "The core of the public suspicion is whether external pressure was involved in the process of changing the terminus of the Seoul-Yangpyeong Expressway to the direction where 29 plots of land owned by the family of First Lady Kim Geon-hee are located," adding, "Not an inch of suspicion has been resolved over the past year."

The Seoul-Yangpyeong Expressway controversy began last July when the Democratic Party of Korea raised allegations of preferential treatment, claiming that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport was pushing for a route change to Gangsang-myeon (originally Yangseo-myeon), which is close to the land owned by First Lady Kim Geon-hee's family. Currently, construction of the expressway has been halted. However, these allegations continued during this year's audit as well.

Rep. Bok explained, "In February, the 'Hwado~Joan' section of the Metropolitan Area 2nd Ring Expressway opened, increasing the justification for the original plan of the Yangseo-myeon terminus," adding, "This is due to the significant increase in traffic volume at Dumulmeori in Yangseo-myeon after the connection of 'Hwado~Joan'."

The changed terminus plan at Gangsang-myeon has been criticized for not helping to alleviate congestion on National Route 6 near and leading to Dumulmeori, which was the original purpose of the Seoul-Yangpyeong Expressway.

Based on this, Rep. Bok said, "The traffic demand for the original Yangseo-myeon plan was underestimated," and "A cost-benefit analysis needs to be redone."

He continued, "The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has been conducting a special audit on the Yangpyeong Expressway since June," but criticized, "The Ministry's stance that matters related to the route change are not subject to the audit is incomprehensible."

Rep. Lee So-young of the Democratic Party of Korea pointed out, "The final alternative Route 1 terminus ramp, located 1.8 km above Namyangpyeong IC, exactly overlaps with the mountainside land owned by the president's in-laws," adding, "It connects precisely to the president's in-laws' land as if drawn with a ruler."

When Rep. Lee asked Minister Park, "Does this mean the president's in-laws will receive land compensation?" Minister Park replied, "Depending on the route details, that possibility exists. I learned this for the first time today."

He pointed out, "There may be suspicion that the president's mother-in-law and brother-in-law were aiming for such land compensation money, but at the time when the preferential treatment allegations surfaced last July, they were raising black goats and turkeys on the mountainside land," explaining, "If livestock are raised on land to be compensated, additional compensation is received."

Minister Park said, "I cannot answer because I do not know their intentions," adding, "There was no preferential treatment or external pressure, and the staff have a firm belief regarding that part."