Jinseongjun's "House Prices Won't Fall Anyway" Remark Sparks Controversy... Opposition: "X-Man, Can't Laugh or Cry"

Jinseongjun "Distorted Reporting Unrelated to Debate Context"
United Party "Self-Confession and Serious Debate"
People's Party "Better Than President's Speech"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] Jin Seongjun, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, sparked controversy by stating on MBC's 100-Minute Debate that "even if such measures are taken, housing prices will not fall." In response, Jin clarified on the 17th that "my remarks are being distorted and reported out of context." Meanwhile, opposition parties criticized the statement as tantamount to the government and ruling party admitting failure in real estate policy.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the same day, Jin issued a press release stating, "My remarks were not intended to imply that the government's measures are ineffective." He explained, "My comments were a rebuttal to the perceptions and claims of 'housing price decline advocates' who try to undermine the government's strong real estate policies," emphasizing, "Throughout the debate, I consistently argued for establishing the principle of one house per household, especially following the government's July 10 real estate measures."

He added, "I deeply regret the media's distortion of my remarks without considering their context or verifying my true intent," and stressed, "With a clear understanding that housing prices will not easily fall and with extraordinary resolve, I will strive to suppress real estate speculation and firmly establish the one house per household principle centered on actual demand."

After the Supreme Council meeting on the morning of the same day, Jin told reporters, "My point was that housing prices will not fall to the extent that it would threaten the national economy, so we should not exaggerate and incite fear of a housing price collapse." He continued, "If you watch the entire debate, you will see that my remarks were absolutely not intended as such," and expressed strong regret toward the media for selectively quoting his remarks without context, calling it distorted reporting.

While Jin shifted the responsibility to "media distortion," opposition parties criticized the remarks as effectively admitting failure of real estate policy. The United Future Party condemned it as "a confession by a ruling party lawmaker that is neither laughable nor tearful."

Hwang Kyuhwan, deputy spokesperson of the United Future Party, said in a statement, "Ultimately, the government and ruling party have confessed that they neither can nor intend to control housing prices," adding, "From the Democratic Party's perspective, Jin may be seen as an 'X-Man,' but the public cannot help but be outraged that all previous measures were empty promises."

Kim Eunhye, spokesperson for the United Future Party, also commented the same day, calling it a "drunken truth-telling in the debate," and said, "We have confirmed the two faces of the Moon Jae-in administration. Honest confessions are better than incompetence. It is time to end the real estate policies that only hurt the people."

Hong Kyunghee, senior deputy spokesperson of the People's Party, stated in a commentary, "Jin's remarks are quite normal and even human," adding, "They are better than the president's hollow speeches. There is no need to refute the controversy. That is the reality."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.