Seoul Metropolitan Council Deems SH Corporation President Candidate Kim Hyun-ah 'Unqualified'...Will It Trigger Conflict with Oh Se-hoon?

Candidate Kim, owner of 4 real estate properties, criticized for philosophy as SH President... Conflict expected with Seoul City Council depending on Mayor Oh Se-hoon's decision; SH President Kim to assume office early August, preparing for work reports

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] The Seoul Metropolitan Council has expressed an unfavorable opinion regarding Kim Hyun-ah, the SH president candidate known to own two apartments, an officetel, and four residential properties including commercial buildings.

The Seoul Metropolitan Council's Special Committee for the Personnel Hearing of the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation President Candidate (Chairman Noh Sik-rae, photo) on the 28th passed a personnel hearing progress report with an 'unqualified' opinion on candidate Kim Hyun-ah.

This has drawn attention to whether Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon will accept the opinion of the Seoul Metropolitan Council's personnel hearing special committee.

Mayor Oh could ignore this and appoint candidate Kim as president, but if that happens, a confrontation with the Seoul Metropolitan Council seems inevitable.

SH is reportedly preparing for work reports, expecting Kim Hyun-ah to be appointed president in early August.

The special committee, after the candidate’s policy presentation and a Q&A session with committee members during the personnel hearing, verified the candidate’s morality, capability for responsible policy implementation, and management competence, resulting in this conclusion. The reasons for the 'unqualified' judgment were specified as follows.

First, the candidate consistently disparaged and criticized government and Seoul city public housing policies without presenting concrete alternatives; moreover, there was no understanding, firm stance, or persuasive future vision regarding Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation’s policy issues.

Second, as a multi-homeowner with unclear explanations about the formation of her assets, she is deemed inappropriate for the position of president of a public corporation responsible for welfare housing for ordinary citizens and public housing supply policies.

Third, additional verification of the candidate’s qualifications is necessary due to issues such as opaque accounting transactions in the corporation where she is a co-representative and insufficient explanations regarding inaccurate property declarations.

Chairman Noh Sik-rae stated, “After thorough and multifaceted verification by the special committee, candidate Kim Hyun-ah lacks the basic qualifications to undertake the important responsibility of managing the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation, as she failed to present persuasive alternatives or a vision for the corporation’s development beyond criticism of real estate housing policies.”

He added, “The Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation is a very important institution for stabilizing housing for ordinary citizens. It is a public corporation aimed at solving housing issues for those marginalized in the market, where market logic does not operate. In contrast, the candidate is a multi-homeowner who has consistently advocated market-centered logic. This does not align with the corporation’s identity and ethos and is more suited to a private company.”

He further explained, “The candidate’s past inappropriate remarks during her time as a member of the National Assembly, her insincere property declarations, and suspicions of private use of the corporation are evidence that she lacks the basic qualifications required for a public corporation president who must bear high responsibility.”

Finally, Chairman Noh Sik-rae urged the Seoul Metropolitan Government to respect the special committee’s personnel hearing progress report opposing Kim Hyun-ah’s appointment and to consider a more suitable candidate for the president of the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation.

Chairman Noh emphasized that while the appointment of the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation president is the mayor’s authority, the mayor is also responsible for any problems arising from appointing an unsuitable president.

The personnel hearing for the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation president candidate is based on the ‘Agreement on Personnel Hearings between the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Metropolitan Council,’ under which the council must submit a personnel hearing progress report to the Seoul Metropolitan Government after the appointment candidate’s hearing.

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