Choi Soo-jin, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, revealed on October 28 that the Presidential Office has spent approximately 3.6 billion won on public opinion polls over the past 16 months since the launch of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, without disclosing details such as the topics and conducting agencies.
According to materials submitted by the Presidential Office for a National Assembly audit, a total of 181 polls were conducted from June of last year to September of this year, averaging more than 11 polls per month.
The expenditure for these polls amounted to 1.59 billion won last year and 2.018 billion won up to September this year, totaling 3.609 billion won. The annual budget allocation increased from 2.015 billion won last year to 2.87 billion won this year, marking a 39.3% rise.
In response to inquiries regarding the conducting agencies, topics, costs, and results of the polls, the Presidential Office stated that it is difficult to provide specific details based on the Information Disclosure Act.
The office explained that disclosing such information could hinder the fair execution of its duties, as the polls involve matters under internal review or decision-making processes.
The proposed budget for next year’s 'government operation management' project, which includes polling and promotional content, is set at 11.615 billion won, an increase of 3.861 billion won (49.8%) from this year's budget of 7.754 billion won.
As of the end of September this year, the execution amount for this project was 4.233 billion won, with an execution rate of 54.6%. Last year, out of a budget of 6.58 billion won, 2.432 billion won was deemed unused.
Regarding the details of the budget for producing government promotional content, the Presidential Office stated that disclosure is difficult due to the highly confidential nature of the agency.
Choi pointed out, "If polls are conducted 11 times a month without even revealing the topics, the public cannot discern whether these are for governance or for managing approval ratings."
She urged, "At the very least, the topics, conducting agencies, and costs should be disclosed, and before requesting a budget increase, the office must provide a detailed account of the expenditures over the past year and a half to the National Assembly."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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