So Byeonghun: "Resistance forces will grow in the latter half of Moon administration... Strengthening party-government consultations"

Interview with So Byung-hoon, Democratic Party Supreme Council Candidate
"Only 3 Weeks Since Real Estate Law Passed... Support Rate Decline, 'Public Sentiment' Over Success"
Criticizes United Future Party: "Must Break Ties with Jeon Gwang-hoon Faction... 'Vanguard Unit'"

Assemblyman So Byung-hoon of the Democratic Party of Korea. / Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Wondara] "People say the real estate policy has failed, but it has been less than three weeks since the law was passed. Yet, it is criticized as a failure every day."

So Byeong-hoon, a candidate for the Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party of Korea, answered this way in an interview with Asia Economy on the 21st when asked about the "cause of the Democratic Party's declining approval ratings." He said, "Regarding the real estate issue, it seems that it touched on the emotional side of the public more than the success or failure of the policy." So is the only member of the National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee among the Supreme Council candidates. Since the real estate policy became a 'time bomb' during the Moon Jae-in administration, he is determined to actively solve this issue once he becomes a Supreme Council member.

So said, "As the Moon Jae-in administration enters its later stages, the forces that will strongly resist will increase," and emphasized, "Bureaucrats cannot be considered always right. Things that were discussed behind the scenes to avoid appearing as discord between the party and the government should be discussed strongly and openly in the latter half of the administration." So also proposed strengthening party-government consultations as a solution. He said, "We will actively involve the Policy Coordination Meeting in the party-government meetings and hold party-government meetings by standing committees once a month."

Regarding the future legislative direction, he also said "It should obviously be extended" in response to the claim within the ruling party that the lease contract period should be extended to a maximum of six years. However, he added, "With the introduction of the '2+2' system, tenants will not be disadvantaged for the next four years, and there is also the rent ceiling system, so we will not push it immediately, but we will definitely make adjustments." He also said, "For now, we will focus on supply measures," adding, "We should view housing as a public good directly related to the right to live."

Regarding the United Future Party, which did not participate in the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee during the recent real estate legislation process, he criticized, "They are trying to neutralize the policy by putting forward the Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl and the Taegeukgi Unit as vanguards," and said, "If they truly want change, they should break ties with the Jeon Kwang-hoon faction in the future."

Regarding the recent scandals of sexual harassment allegations against local government heads, which have become a series of setbacks for the party, he said, "As the party grows, people who were in the ruling party in the past have come, and since more than 60% of local government politicians are affiliated with the Democratic Party in the local elections, various incidents have occurred," and added, "Since I have been in charge of important positions such as the Party Member Qualification Review Committee that set the party's direction, I will strictly manage these issues."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, So is also a co-representative of the National Assembly's 'Basic Income Research Forum.' It is the first official research forum in the National Assembly studying basic income. The 31 lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties participating in this forum have also announced plans to jointly propose basic income-related bills. So said, "It is connected to my life philosophy," and added, "As basic income becomes an issue, we are conducting more thorough legal reviews with the Legislative Research Office. We plan to quickly submit at least a minimal form of the bill soon."

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