Seoul City: "Seoul Partners House's Criticism of 'Gonggwan Politics' is Unreasonable"

Spokesperson Sin Seon-jong's Statement on the Afternoon of the 6th
"Simultaneous Execution of Administrative Activities and Corporate Support Functions"

The Seoul Metropolitan Government expressed the position that it is "unreasonable" in response to a Seoul city council member's criticism of Mayor Oh Se-hoon using the Seoul Partners House as a meeting venue, calling it "official residence politics."

On the afternoon of the 6th, Shin Seon-jong, spokesperson for the Seoul Metropolitan Government, stated in a press release, "Is it something to be criticized that the Seoul Partners House, a facility open to citizens, is rented out and used by the mayor as a place for communication such as meetings?" The Seoul Partners House, opened in 2009, is a city facility with lodging and conference rooms to support small and medium-sized enterprises' business activities.

Seoul Partners House

Earlier, Lee Min-ok, a Seoul city council member from the Democratic Party of Korea, commented on Mayor Oh's participation record in meetings held at the Seoul Partners House, saying, "Although there is a mayor's office in City Hall, holding most major policy meetings at the Seoul Partners House can only be seen as an intention to conduct 'official residence politics' in a luxurious official residence." According to Lee's analysis, among the total 435 facility uses from 2023 to 2024, 54% were for 'exchange and cooperation' purposes such as administrative meetings, and Mayor Oh attended 97% of these meetings.

Spokesperson Shin explained that although the original purpose of the Seoul Partners House was as the mayor's official residence, Mayor Oh proposed in 2008 to utilize it as a "space to support small and medium-sized enterprises." He added, "Mayor Oh, who was negative about former Mayor Park Won-soon's use of a luxurious house as an official residence, rented an apartment at his own expense from his by-election victory until April 2023. However, due to early morning mass protests causing significant inconvenience to residents in the complex, he is currently using part of the Partners House converted into an official residence."

He emphasized that the Partners House facility serves both functions of supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and administrative activities. Spokesperson Shin said, "Except for the third floor used as the mayor's residence, the rest of the space continues to operate as a support area for small and medium-sized enterprises," and added, "The activation of meetings using the Seoul Partners House rental facilities also has reasons such as budget savings."