United Future Party: "Kim Hyun-mi, House Prices Up 11%? ... Which Country Are You Living In?"

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mi is attending the government-wide economic sector questioning session held at the National Assembly on the 23rd, responding to questions from lawmakers. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] On the 23rd, the United Future Party criticized Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mi’s response during the National Assembly’s government questioning session, where she said she knew the house prices had risen by 11% according to the Korea Appraisal Board statistics, asking, “Which country does Minister Kim live in?”

Kim Eun-hye, spokesperson for the United Future Party, said in a statement that day, “Even without listing the 52% increase revealed by the Korea Economic Justice Institute over the past three years of the Moon Jae-in administration, or the fact that property tax alone surged 842.9 billion won, a 27-fold increase, Minister Kim’s remarks are far removed from the public’s perception,” adding, “The public must have been devastated to hear statistics selectively chosen to suit the government’s taste.”

She pointed out, “Is the minister saying that the house prices only rose by 11%, so she was urgently summoned by the president? How will she explain the fiasco of announcing real estate policies 22 times?” and added, “This government is not honest. If they wanted to persuade the public with incomprehensible statistics during a public report, they should not have glossed over it but clearly disclosed the basis and criteria first.”

She continued, “This week, ordinary citizens screamed at their property tax bills, and even after hitting single-home real demanders with a comprehensive real estate tax bomb, the minister only treats homeowners as speculators and offers no sincere apology.”

Spokesperson Kim also said, “The former policy chief at the Blue House who designed the Moon Jae-in administration’s real estate policy wrote a book saying one does not need to own a house, yet he reportedly made over 1 billion won in profit from an apartment in Gwacheon. This is a government where it’s okay for them to buy a house, but not for the people,” and added, “When the logic becomes this weak, this government looks for scapegoats. It seems they intend to keep the Blue House senior official if he sells his house, but replace him if he remains a two-home owner.”

Spokesperson Kim concluded, “What crime have the people committed to have to watch this absurd farce full of contradictions, not even a 21st-century style corruption? We expect the minister, who said she would not cling to her position today, to lead by example.”

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