"Illegal Private Contract... Preferential Treatment for NCSoft"
On May 18, the People Power Party raised allegations that Lee Jaemyung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party, granted preferential treatment to NCSoft during his tenure as mayor of Seongnam regarding the sale of the planned Pangyo District Office site.
Jang Youngha, head of the Truth Response Strategy Team for the People Power Party's election committee, held a press conference at the party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, and stated, "We will file criminal complaints against all those involved in the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the planned Pangyo District Office site and the private contract process for city-owned land related to candidate Lee Jaemyung, on charges including breach of duty and abuse of authority in the course of official duties."
According to Jang, in 2018, Lee signed an MOU to sell a 25,000-pyeong (approximately 82,500 square meters) private plot in Baekhyeon-dong 641, Seongnam, to NCSoft through a private contract, granting the company preferential treatment. Jang argued that this was a prearranged agreement that effectively allowed a specific company to secure the land in advance.
He stated, "According to the Board of Audit and Inspection, the site in question was not officially designated as a software promotion facility by the Ministry of Science and ICT, and the key clauses related to the designation requirements were deleted from the contract. Entering into a private contract without fulfilling these essential legal requirements constitutes a clear violation of administrative procedures and is a serious illegality."
On the same day, Yoo Jaeho, a former Seongnam City Council member, also held a press conference and claimed that he was ostracized during his term for opposing the MOU regarding the sale of the planned Pangyo District Office site to NCSoft.
Yoo stated, "I believed fairness was compromised before the bidding and requested the MOU be canceled, but Seongnam City repeatedly responded only that there were 'no plans to sell.' As a result, I was expelled from the Democratic Party council members' association in the Seongnam City Council for opposing the sale of the Pangyo District Office site." He added, "On the council's KakaoTalk chat, the other members created a new chat room to communicate among themselves, leaving me behind. In effect, I was ostracized and isolated from legislative activities."
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