Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon Speaks Out Directly: "Did Not Request Poll... Doubts About Cost Payment"

After the Press Briefing, "I Will Resolve It Myself"
Regarding Mr. Myung, "There Was No Reason to Contact"
Explaining 'Mr. Kim's Voluntary Decision' on Expense Payment
"Must Reveal Quickly Through Investigation... Will Hold Responsible"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has once again denied the allegations surrounding Myeong Tae-gyun during the Seoul mayoral by-election. He clearly drew a line regarding his relationship with Myeong, Kang Hye-kyung, and Kim, known as a sponsor, and explained that the payment for the opinion poll costs was based on Kim's voluntary decision.

On the morning of the 26th, after a press briefing on support measures for small business owners at Seoul City Hall, Mayor Oh stated, "There have been many recent articles related to Myeong Tae-gyun. Since the opportunity has arisen, I will take questions and directly resolve any doubts," and addressed each controversy point by point.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon is responding to a question related to Myeong Tae-gyun during the announcement of support measures for small business owners held on the 26th at the Seoul City Hall briefing room in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jo Yong-jun

First, regarding his relationship with Myeong, Mayor Oh emphasized, "Myeong came around mid to late January 2021, met twice with Representative Kim Young-seon, and the last time was when I handed him over to Deputy Mayor for Political Affairs Kang Cheol-won, who was overseeing the campaign. Since then, there has been no reason to contact Myeong, exchange anything, or share opinions."

The previous day, Kang stated during her prosecution appearance that when asked by reporters whether the Future Korea Research Institute conducted 13 undisclosed opinion polls related to candidate Oh Se-hoon during the 2021 Seoul mayoral by-election and whether the results were accurately delivered to Oh's side, she responded, "I believe the results were accurately delivered to Oh's side," adding, "If it had been just once or twice, it would have been considered for reference only, but there were about 13 polls. Including public polls, the number is even higher, but we don't usually conduct that many (opinion polls) just for internal viewing."

However, Mayor Oh criticized the opinion polls proposed by Myeong, saying, "The formality and protocol were not appropriate." He explained, "When conducting opinion polls, the distribution should be balanced, including age and regional distribution, but all of these violated the usual standards of legitimate opinion polls." According to Mayor Oh, there was a dispute during this process, which escalated into a fight, resulting in a situation where they could no longer meet.

Regarding the core allegation of the payment for opinion poll costs, Mayor Oh said, "I was shocked to see reports that 33 million won was sent in several installments last week or so," adding, "Our campaign said it was unnecessary, so I don't understand why this was done." Ultimately, Mayor Oh believes it started from Kim's intention to help him. He also mentioned that his relationship with Kim began during the controversy over free school meals in the past. It started with phone calls and meetings when Kim personally hung a placard stating that 'populist free school meal policies are not right' as a simple sponsor.

Mayor Oh demanded that those who received opinion poll-related materials from Myeong and Kang clearly disclose to whom they were given. He elaborated, "This is a confident demand from the perspective that they should clearly state it instead of saying 'Oh Se-hoon’s side' to avoid misunderstandings." He also warned that after the results of investigations by the prosecution and others are released, he will hold those who make defamatory or speculative claims criminally and civilly responsible.

Regarding a recent citizen group's accusation, he rather expressed hope that "it will be quickly clarified through investigation." The day before, the Citizens' Action for Judicial Justice (Sasaehaeng) filed a complaint against Mayor Oh at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office for violating the Political Funds Act. They claim that during the 2021 Seoul mayoral election, Mayor Oh had Kim, his longtime sponsor, pay the 33 million won cost related to the opinion polls conducted by Myeong.