Public Anger Triggered by LH Speculation... Can the Blue House Anti-Corruption Policy Council Calm It?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Amid the ongoing public outrage triggered by the LH speculation scandal, the Blue House is set to hold an anti-corruption policy council on the 29th, convening government officials under the chairmanship of President Moon Jae-in. Attention is focused on whether a fundamental solution to the real estate speculation issue, as directed by President Moon, will emerge.

According to the Blue House, an emergency anti-corruption policy council aimed at eradicating real estate corruption will be held at the Blue House on the 29th under President Moon's leadership. The meeting will discuss measures to eliminate real estate speculation and prevent its recurrence, as well as the activation of an inter-ministerial response system to root out real estate corruption.

Attendees include Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance; Park Beom-gye, Minister of Justice; Jeon Hae-cheol, Minister of the Interior and Safety; Koo Yun-cheol, Director of the Office for Government Policy Coordination; Eun Sung-soo, Chairman of the Financial Services Commission; Jeon Hyun-hee, Chairperson of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission; Cho Nam-gwan, Acting Prosecutor General; Kim Dae-ji, Commissioner of the National Tax Service; and Kim Chang-ryong, Commissioner of the National Police Agency.

Earlier, the government launched a large-scale investigation into public officials and employees of public enterprises suspected of speculation, uncovering 23 local government officials and 5 local public enterprise employees on the 19th. The Blue House also conducted first and second rounds of speculation investigations on its staff, confirming no suspicious speculative transactions.

However, due to the LH fallout, President Moon's approval rating has hit a post-inauguration low of 34%, and public anger has yet to subside. Consequently, all eyes are on whether the emergency anti-corruption policy council will devise extraordinary measures to quell the public's outrage.

According to political circles, prior to the council, the ruling party and government officials will hold a high-level meeting on the 28th to discuss countermeasures. Currently mentioned measures to prevent real estate speculation include expanding the scope of public officials required to register assets, restricting employment qualifications, voluntary reporting of real estate transactions, and recovering unjust speculative gains.

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