Oh Se-hoon, the mayor of Seoul, sharply criticized President Lee Jae-myung's comments on real estate, stating, "I feel it's pointless to persuade the president any longer." Oh refuted the government's claims of increased housing permits and construction in Seoul and the surrounding area as a success of its policies, urging the government to acknowledge its failures and change direction in light of the public's housing struggles.
On October 6, Oh posted on Facebook titled "The urgency of the people's lives is too great to watch the president's mental victory." He referenced several real estate-related posts made by the president on social media the previous day, criticizing him for appearing to lack the willingness to accept reality.
He pointed out, "When housing prices rise, it's blamed on speculative forces; when the side effects of policies are highlighted, it's seen as resistance from vested interests; and when the public cries out in pain, the president dismisses it as backlash that must be endured during the reform process. This narrow-minded perception offers little hope for the future."
This statement goes beyond a rebuttal of specific policies, as it questions the president's attitude toward accepting the side effects and criticisms of his policies. The expression "persuasion is pointless" reflects Oh's disappointment that there is little hope for changing direction through policy debate.
Oh focused on refuting the president's assertion that the increase in housing permits and construction in Seoul and the surrounding area compared to the previous year is due to the government's "speed strategy."
He asked, "What kind of speed strategy has the government implemented? It takes an average of over ten years from the establishment of a cooperative to the start of construction. Does the president have a magic lamp that can produce permits and construction in just one year?" This criticism suggests that attributing the long-term results of Seoul's redevelopment projects to the current government's "speed strategy" distorts the facts.
The crux of the criticism lies in the time lag between housing supply results and policy effects. Oh argued that evaluating the increase in permits and construction as a success of any government requires examining when the projects began and the procedures they underwent. He contended that attributing this year's redevelopment project results solely to the current government's short-term policies ignores the restoration process that the city has been undertaking.
He likened the situation to the previous administration under Park Won-soon, which uprooted redevelopment projects and laid down herbicides, stating that the results of the city's continuous restoration efforts are now gradually becoming evident.
According to Oh, 389 redevelopment projects, totaling 430,000 units, were canceled during Park's tenure. He explained that the city has worked diligently to designate 214 new projects and improve their viability, thereby accelerating the conditions for permits and construction.
He noted that approximately 15,000 units of redevelopment projects broke ground last year, with a goal of starting 30,000 units this year. By 2028, the plan is to begin construction on a total of 85,000 units across 85 districts.
Oh emphasized, "These results were not achieved overnight. We are steadily rebuilding the collapsed supply base and reaping the fruits of our labor." He added, "It is disheartening to see the president ignore this normalization process and offer a self-serving interpretation of the situation."
Oh also criticized the president's perception of real estate policy as being trapped in a political dichotomy of conservative versus progressive. He stated, "This president believes that conservative governments encourage speculation while progressive governments suppress it," labeling this as a baseless binary thinking. He questioned, "What can we expect from a president who cannot step beyond viewing real estate through an ideological lens rather than market principles?"
He continued, "According to the president, if conservative governments encourage speculation, housing prices should rise, and if progressive governments suppress it, prices should stabilize. But the reality is the opposite, isn't it?" This highlights the need to distinguish between the justification for policies and their actual outcomes. Just because a policy claims to suppress speculation does not prove its effectiveness; it must be evaluated based on results in housing prices, supply, and the rental market.
Oh stated, "Ignoring even the existing facts and merely achieving a mental victory will not change the outcomes of policies. It will only prolong the housing hell that the public is experiencing."
He also expressed concern over the president's request for the public to be patient. Quoting the president's statement to wait a little longer with a sense of ease, Oh remarked, "This is not something to say in front of citizens who are struggling to find a place to move amid a rental crisis."
At the end of his post, Oh urged the president to honestly acknowledge the failures of the past year in real estate policy and courageously declare a correction of the misguided direction to start anew. He emphasized, "Acknowledging failure is not defeat. Changing one's thinking and policies in the face of the public's suffering is the true courage that a national leader can demonstrate."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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