"Ni-ga Gara Gonggongimdae" to Yoo Seung-min... Ruling Party: "For Someone, It's a Living Space, Don't Speak Carelessly"

President Moon Jae-in is seen on the morning of the 11th at the Dongtan Public Rental Housing complex, commemorating 1 million LH rental housing units in Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi Province, inspecting single-story rental housing units and conversing with Kim Hyun-mee, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and Byun Chang-heum, nominee for Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (current LH president).
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Eun-young] Former Future United Party lawmaker Yoo Seung-min criticized the Moon Jae-in administration's public rental housing policy by saying "You go to public rental housing," prompting the Democratic Party to respond with calls for an apology.

At a briefing on the 13th, Democratic Party youth spokesperson Kwon Ji-woong said, "Do not speak carelessly about public rental housing," adding, "Treating those who live in the housing that was mocked with 'You go to public rental housing' and those waiting to move in as equal citizens in the public discourse is what a democratic republic is about."

He continued, "The statement that 'ordinary people have dreams of owning a home, but they tell others to live in public rental housing even though they themselves do not want to' disparages those waiting for public rental housing and implies that people living in or waiting for public housing are not 'normal citizens,'" he pointed out.

He further stated, "The public rental housing policy that you (former lawmaker Yoo) mockingly tell to stop is a housing ladder that provides a refuge for those with unstable lives," adding, "Do not recklessly make irresponsible remarks like 'You go to public rental housing' when you cannot even sufficiently supply public rental housing to citizens exposed to housing insecurity."

He also said, "Many young people visit the websites of LH (Korea Land and Housing Corporation) and SH (Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation) even today," and "There are young people who visit public rental housing websites daily. It is not because they do not want to buy a house, but because they cannot afford to buy one and are looking for other options."

Spokesperson Kwon added, "Korean society has consistently pursued owner-occupied housing policies, but unfortunately, the proportion of people owning homes has not increased by even 1% over the past 35 years," noting, "It decreased from 59% in 1980 to 57% in 2015. Given this situation, people are desperately seeking various ways to live stably even without buying a house."

Policy Committee Chair Han Jeong-ae also stated on social media that day, "All presidential candidates pledged to significantly expand public rental housing," adding, "However, suddenly there is a barrage of attacks on public rental housing. Public housing policy should not be a target of attacks. Rather, more bold and active financial and policy interventions are needed to meet the changing housing demands of the people economically and socially."

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