"All LH (inside) is mine," "LH Money LH Mountain"... Angry Citizens' Satirical and Humorous Takes on LH Draw Attention

"Join if you’re so eager" LH employee mockingly says "It’s all LH’s!" satire
Public outrage over speculation scandal eased through satire

A parody post combining the English letters of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) with a fairy tale book title. / Photo by Online Community Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] "LH (nae) lives alone," "LHdonLHsan (LH bought with LH money)"

Amid public outrage over allegations of speculation by some employees of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) in the new towns of Gwangmyeong and Siheung, Gyeonggi Province, a type of satirical post mocking the situation is spreading online. It is being seen as a way to cope with the scandal of public enterprise employees illegally speculating using insider information through humor.

On the 11th, posts ridiculing the LH speculation allegations in a ridiculous manner appeared on social networking services (SNS) and online communities, attracting netizens' attention. These posts were created by combining LH with famous TV programs, fairy tale books, and popular phrases.

For example, one netizen shared an image modifying the title of the fairy tale book "It's All Mine" to "It's All LH's." This satire seems to be based on the similarity between the letters "LH" and the Korean word "nae" (meaning "mine").

Parody post of LH speculation allegations using the title of a famous entertainment program (above) and a satirical post using Millet's oil painting. / Photo by Internet community capture

In another post, the MBC entertainment program "I Live Alone" was altered to "LH Lives Alone," and the newly coined phrase "naedonnaesan (I bought it with my own money)" was changed to "LHdonLHsan," which also gained popularity as a form of mockery.

Satire using classic artworks also appeared. On an online community, the French painter Jean-Fran?ois Millet's oil painting "The Gleaners" was captioned with "Planting saplings at the 3rd New Town site." Earlier, some employees were suspected of planting saplings on the land to increase compensation, and this was interpreted as a satirical reference to that.

These posts emerged especially in the context of some LH employees repeatedly making offensive remarks on online communities, which sparked controversy.

Earlier, on the 4th, a post appeared on the anonymous workplace community "Blind" seemingly defending the speculation allegations. An LH employee wrote on Blind, "Is there a law that says LH employees cannot invest in real estate?" and argued, "Whether they speculated unfairly using insider information or invested based on their own study is a matter for the courts or prosecutors to decide."

On the 8th, a conversation mocking citizens who gathered to protest the speculation scandal was revealed, causing further controversy. According to the disclosed messenger chat logs, one employee commented on a photo of citizens gathered in front of the LH headquarters in Jinju, Gyeongnam, saying, "There is a redevelopment protest in Dongja-dong at our headquarters, but since it's a high-rise, I can't hear anything. It's awesome."

On the 8th, a KakaoTalk conversation presumed to be among LH employees was posted on the anonymous workplace community 'Blind'. / Photo by Blind capture

Citizens also actively shared satirical posts, expressing their outrage over the speculation allegations. A 20-something office worker, Mr. A, said, "It's absurd that employees of a public enterprise, who should uphold strict professional ethics, engaged in illegal speculation to increase their wealth, but I was even more shocked by some employees' shameless attitudes," adding, "In a way, using satire to relieve such absurdity and frustration reflects a 'bittersweet' reality."

Another office worker, Mr. B (31), stated, "The government must severely punish the employees involved in speculation through thorough investigations," and added, "I see this as an opportunity to root out the deep-seated corruption in Korea's public service."

Meanwhile, the government joint investigation team, which is investigating the LH employees' land speculation allegations related to the 3rd New Town, will announce the results of the "first full-scale investigation" conducted today (the 11th) targeting Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and LH executives and employees.

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun will personally announce the investigation results at the third regular briefing held at 2:30 p.m. at the Government Seoul Office. The first investigation targets approximately 14,500 people, including about 4,500 Ministry of Land employees and about 9,900 LH employees.

The investigation team examined not only land but also real estate transactions including houses and buildings in the relevant areas. All employees confirmed to have conducted transactions or those who refuse the full-scale investigation will be referred to the police for investigation.

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