[Summary] "How Ridiculous It Must Have Been"... Ruling Party Rushes to Defend 'Jomseureopda' Remark

Kim Kyung-hyeop "If it were illegal, Yoon wouldn't have stayed silent"
Yoon Gun-young "Absurd claim"
No Young-min "A human appeal to refrain from political attacks"

President Moon Jae-in is speaking at a meeting with the Democratic Party of Korea's floor leaders held at the Blue House on the 10th. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Joo-hee] As criticism from opposition parties continues over President Moon Jae-in's expression of displeasure, calling the suspicions related to his private residence in Yangsan, Gyeongnam "petty and embarrassing," the ruling party has actively defended him with remarks such as "an election-driven political offensive" and "he must have been really exasperated to say that."

On the 15th, Kim Kyung-hyeop, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, criticized the opposition during an interview on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' saying, "With the LH (Korea Land and Housing Corporation) employee land speculation scandal breaking out, it seems like an attempt to link this case and attack President Moon just like the LH scandal."

Kim emphasized, "The People Power Party always raises suspicions but rarely admits them even when confirmed as facts. This is truly problematic," adding, "The issue of President Moon's private residence was already raised by the People Power Party during last year's National Assembly audit, and it was thoroughly investigated. At that time, even the local township chief of the relevant Yangsan area was summoned as a witness to the National Assembly, and everything was confirmed with no problems."

He then referred to former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, stating, "If there had been any illegality regarding the residence, would Yoon Seok-youl's prosecution have just stood by? They would have already conducted a thorough investigation."

On the same day, Yoon Geon-young, also from the same party, refuted the related suspicions in an interview with MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus,' calling it "an election-driven political offensive aimed at dragging the president into the political arena and humiliating him ahead of the election."

Yoon criticized the opposition by recalling how they attacked former President Roh Moo-hyun's private residence in Bongha Village 10 years ago, saying, "The People Power Party is still repeating what they did 10 years ago. It's pathological." He added, "They have been repeating absurd claims for nearly a year, which is why the president issued such a message himself," and pointed out, "They are trying to humiliate the Yangsan residence, which has no procedural or substantive issues, by continuously raising suspicions."

Regarding the claim that President Moon violated the Agricultural Land Act by purchasing part of the residence land as farmland and then changing its designation to residential land, he dismissed it as "an elementary school-level issue," saying, "Land use changes frequently occur when people return to farming. Local governments comprehensively approve such land use changes."

President Moon Jae-in criticized the opposition party on Facebook for raising various suspicions about the site of his private residence in Yangsan, Gyeongnam, on the 12th, calling it "petty and embarrassing."/Photo by Facebook capture

Former Presidential Chief of Staff Noh Young-min also defended President Moon's remark of "petty," saying, "He must have been really exasperated to say that," and added, "I think it was a human appeal to refrain from irresponsible political offensives ahead of the election."

In an interview with 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' on the same day, Noh pointed out, "The opposition, which caused a fuss calling former President Roh's Bongha residence a 'palace,' has yet to apologize," and said, "They must have gained significant political advantage, which is why they are trying to impose the same frame on President Moon again."

He continued, "There are no suspicions regarding the acquisition process," emphasizing, "Everything was conducted according to the law, and the facts have already been confirmed."

Earlier, the People Power Party claimed that part of the land purchased by President Moon for residence after his retirement included farmland, arguing that under the Agricultural Land Act, "farmland cannot be owned unless it is used or intended to be used for agricultural management," thus alleging a legal violation.

They also argued that changing the land designation to residential land after purchase was an illicit method, comparing it to the speculation tactics of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) employees who bought farmland in the 3rd New Town area by submitting false agricultural management plans.

In response, on the 12th, President Moon expressed his displeasure unusually through Facebook, saying, "I understand it is election season, but please keep it to that extent. It is petty and embarrassing," adding, "The land is purchased with the president's money and built upon, but since it is combined with security facilities, the president only lives there and cannot dispose of the land. You can see this from former President Roh's Bongha residence. All procedures are being carried out according to the law."

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