The Party and Government to Announce LH Recurrence Prevention Measures on the 28th... SH and GH Direct Relatives Also to Register Assets

Mention of 'LH, SH, GH, Korea Expressway Corporation, Korea Rural Community Corporation, Korail' as Property Registration Subjects
Government to Announce Except Retroactive Application Decision

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun is delivering opening remarks at the high-level party-government-civil cooperation meeting held at the National Assembly on the 19th to discuss measures to eradicate real estate speculation. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] The ruling party and the government will finalize measures to prevent the recurrence of the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) scandal by this weekend, including expanding the scope of asset registration to not only employees of real estate-related public enterprises but also their direct relatives. It is highly likely that not only LH but also Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation (SH), Gyeonggi Housing and Communities Corporation (GH), Korea Rural Community Corporation, Korea Expressway Corporation, and Korail, which are related to real estate development, will be included in the scope.

According to the government and the National Assembly on the 24th, the Democratic Party of Korea and the government plan to discuss the recurrence prevention measures at the National Assembly on the 28th. A senior government official said, "We are considering making it mandatory for employees involved in real estate development work at SH, GH, etc., as well as their spouses and direct relatives, to register their assets," adding, "Since it is practically difficult to register and manage the assets of all public officials above grade 9, the ruling party and government will discuss expanding the scope of public officials to a manageable range for supervision and management." This means broadening the scope of mandatory asset registration for heads, deputy heads, standing directors, and standing auditors of public enterprises.

However, there is still disagreement over the scope of public officials required to report assets. Previously, the ruling party announced plans to expand the asset disclosure scope to all public officials, but under the current Public Officials Ethics Act, not only central government officials but also military officials, education, police, and fire officials are included. Including these groups in the asset disclosure target as part of the LH scandal recurrence prevention measures is considered inconsistent with the original intent. A government official said, "We are not sure whether it is appropriate to include fire and education officials, including expanding to all public officials," adding, "We cannot ignore the opposition from public officials."

The public officials' union is showing signs of resistance regarding this matter. On the 23rd, the union issued a statement titled "Lower-ranking public officials are not scapegoats for avoiding land speculation risks," stating, "If the number of asset registration targets increases from 220,000 to 1.5 million, the scope would be unimaginable," and "It is no different from trying to look into the assets of the entire population."

The ruling party and government also plan to discuss measures to recover unjust gains. However, regarding the recovery of profits from speculation by LH employees, which attracted attention, the government maintains the position that 'retroactive application' is difficult. A government official said, "Confiscating or recovering assets obtained from violations before the measures were established raises constitutional concerns," and "Retroactive application will not be on the agenda for this ruling party-government consultation."

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