Incheon City Activates Whistleblower Hotline for Speculation Allegations... Targeting New Towns and All Development Projects

On the 15th, a notice related to the meeting of the special metropolitan prosecutors in charge of real estate speculation was posted at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Incheon City will operate a 'Public Interest Reporting Hotline' starting from the 16th, allowing city, county, and district public officials as well as employees of affiliated public enterprises to report suspicions of real estate speculation.

The reporting targets include city, county, and district government officials, employees of public corporations and public institutions, as well as their spouses and direct lineal relatives suspected of real estate speculation, nominee transactions, and providing information to third parties.

This applies not only to the 3rd phase new town target areas but also to all development projects involving public institutions as project implementers. Reports can be made via the hotline phone numbers (032-440-3162~5, 3188).

Additionally, to encourage citizens who hesitate to report due to concerns about identity exposure, anonymous reports will also be accepted through the city's website 'Incheon City Public Officials Impropriety Reporting Center (Help-Line)'.

In accordance with laws and regulations, the personal information of reporters and the content of reports will be strictly kept confidential to ensure the protection of reporters.

The city plans to respond strictly, including disciplinary action, investigation requests, and prosecution, if speculation suspicions are confirmed or suspected through investigation of the reports.

Regarding the government's investigation into new town real estate speculation suspicions, since the 5th, the city has been operating a joint investigation team led by the Auditor General, consisting of four teams within the Auditor's Office, Incheon Urban Corporation, and Gyeyang District.

Kim Insu, Auditor General of Incheon City, stated, "Through the operation of the Public Interest Reporting Hotline, we will thoroughly investigate blind spots that are difficult to cover with the city's own investigation and actively cooperate with the government joint investigation team and the joint investigation headquarters of the prosecution and police. We promise to strictly protect the identity and report contents of reporters, and we ask for your interest and participation."

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