Jung Jinuk: "'Daewang Gorae Project' Proven to Be a Nationwide Scam"

"Yoon Suk-yeol Must Apologize and Completely Reconsider the Project"

Jinwook Jung, Member of the National Assembly.

On the 7th, Democratic Party lawmaker Jung Jinwook (Gwangju Dongnam-gap) stated, "President Yoon Suk-yeol must apologize and completely reconsider the 'Daewang Gorae Project,' which has been revealed as a massive fraud against the public by the Yoon administration."

In a statement released that day, Jung pointed out, "Last year, President Yoon promoted the 'Daewang Gorae' project as if our country would become an oil-producing nation, but on the 6th it was exposed as a fabrication."

He explained, "Although the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy identified some signs of gas during the drilling process, the findings were not significant enough to secure economic viability. The decision not to proceed with additional exploratory drilling and to withdraw from the site after removing the well proves this was a fraud against the public."

He continued, "The reality of the fraud was uncovered in just about eight months. The Daewang Gorae project had virtually zero chance of success from the start, yet at the time, President Yoon merely used it as a deceptive scheme to recover low approval ratings and cover up the Kim Keonhee luxury bag scandal. This has once again been exposed to the public."

He further pointed out, "Korea National Oil Corporation had already reported and was pursuing this project to the government as of November 2023, but President Yoon announced it as if it were new information in June last year. Amid heightened expectations of becoming an oil-producing nation, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission ruled 'no charges' in the Kim Keonhee luxury bag case. At that time, President Yoon's approval rating was nearing 20% due to the luxury bag scandal."

He particularly asserted, "During last year's parliamentary audit and other occasions, I criticized President Yoon and the government, saying that the Daewang Gorae project was a national disaster caused by a third-rate president and a third-rate government deceiving the public. The government's announcement on the 6th has now made this clear."

Jung recalled that he had previously pointed out, "At the time, the Yoon Suk-yeol administration deceived the public by using a small company like ActGeo, and has been contaminating a critical national energy project for political purposes."

He emphasized, "There must be accountability for the waste of taxpayer money resulting from the opaque promotion of a national project involving massive budgets, without scientific data or a thorough verification process."

Jung added, "Even now, the government must not only fully reconsider the Daewang Gorae project, but also transparently disclose all materials requested by the National Assembly and clearly explain the progress of the drilling so far. President Yoon must apologize to the public and take legal responsibility as well."