Woo Won-sik "Kim Jo-won family matters, expecting public understanding? Ridiculous" Posted then Deleted

"Don't Be Arrogant in Front of the People" Criticism

Woo Won-sik, Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon, Intern Reporter Kang Joo-hee] It has been confirmed that Woo Won-sik, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, wrote and then deleted a post criticizing former Blue House Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs Kim Jo-won, who left without disposing of multiple houses in Gangnam, Seoul, and Kim Jong-min, a fellow party member who defended Kim.

In the early hours of the 12th, Woo posted on his Facebook targeting former Senior Secretary Kim, saying, "Even if he resigned, as a senior secretary of the Moon Jae-in administration’s Blue House, he is someone for whom the government bears responsibility," and questioned, "Is it right to say that resigning exempts one from all public criticism?"

Previously, former Senior Secretary Kim, who owned apartments in Dogok-dong, Gangnam-gu, and Jamsil-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, had decided to sell the Jamsil apartment following the Blue House guideline to "dispose of all houses except one." However, it was revealed that he listed the property at about 200 million KRW higher than the market price, leading to criticism that he was merely "pretending to sell." Kim left the Blue House after submitting his resignation along with four other aides on the 7th.

Woo also criticized Democratic Party member Kim Jong-min, who defended former Senior Secretary Kim, saying, "After seeing Kim Jong-min’s interview in response to my interview with a broadcast today, I am dumbfounded," and questioned, "Is it right for the public to perceive someone who held a position running the country as someone who is just trying to preserve one apartment?"

On the previous day (the 11th), Kim Jong-min appeared on KBS1’s 'Sasa Geon Geon' and made remarks seemingly defending former Senior Secretary Kim, saying, "There may be various personal family circumstances, and there are reasons that are difficult to disclose." Kim also argued against criticism within the party, stating, "One should not pretend to know and criticize issues they are unaware of. It was a wrong interview. It should not have been done."

In response, Woo said, "I don’t know what family circumstances there are, but is it acceptable to ask the public to understand without disclosing those circumstances when they are not well informed?" He added, "The public views the issue from a common-sense perspective. Listing an apartment at a price higher than the market price inevitably invites criticism. If that is not the case, an explanation should be provided."

However, it was confirmed that Woo later deleted the Facebook post containing these remarks. Regarding the deletion, Woo explained, "I thought my intentions were already fully conveyed during the radio interview, so I deleted it."

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