Kim Jin-ae: "Yoon, the President-elect, has no reason not to enter the Blue House... What kind of king is the president?"

President-elect Yoon's Push for 'Gwanghwamun·Yongsan Office' Faces Calls for "Caution"
"Current Blue House Structure Has Low Work Efficiency... Improvement Needed"

Former Open Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Jin-ae criticized President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol's campaign promise to relocate the presidential office. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] Former Open Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Jin-ae strongly criticized President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol, who is pushing for the 'Gwanghwamun Office,' saying, "A Gwanghwamun president will be a 'nuisance'." She pointed out that there is no reason to re-promote a pledge that was found problematic and discarded during President Moon Jae-in's administration.

On the 15th, former lawmaker Kim appeared on TBS Radio's 'Shin Jang-sik's Shin Jang Open' and said, "Gwanghwamun Square is currently being reborn as a citizen-friendly space returned to the people," adding, "If the presidential office is located there, it will create many conflicts with various activities."

Kim said, "(Actually) it was President Moon who first declared the Gwanghwamun president concept. At that time, a committee was formed for about a year and a half, but due to issues such as security, guarding, and securing space, the conclusion was to discard it," and questioned, "That was in January 2019, so about three years have passed. Has the space changed since then?"

She continued, "Especially, the idea of looking for another location for the official residence is really strange. Is there any reason why they can't enter the Blue House?" Kim said, "(The Gwanghwamun office pledge) is not something that the transition committee should decide within two months. The Blue House is a symbol of the Republic of Korea and also a symbol worldwide, so it requires great caution," and "Moreover, it has been decided to establish a second office in Sejong City. I think it will be a nuisance and is not in accordance with proper procedures."

When the host asked, "There is also a proposal to review the 'Yongsan Office,'" Kim responded, "That makes no sense. It's unreasonable," adding, "Is it really going to suddenly change from the Gwanghwamun era to the Yongsan era? You can't just move it to a private apartment," she said. She also added, "They are telling the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Defense to leave, and even talking about the Prime Minister's official residence. What kind of king is the president?"

As an urban planning expert, former lawmaker Kim pointed out the inefficiency of the current Blue House space. She said, "The Blue House is not an efficient space for work. It isolates the president quite a bit. That's why the president moves around with the secretariat, and President Moon Jae-in often came down to work together. Changing the Blue House like that is a very necessary task," arguing that it would be better to transform the Blue House into a more efficient workspace.

Regarding the 'Blue House Feng Shui theory' raised by some, she said, "'The feng shui is bad,' 'The president's fate is bad,' these kinds of things are said," adding, "If it is good architecture and a good city, even if the feng shui is bad, good architecture is about managing that. The energy of the people there, overcoming that energy is what makes truly good feng shui."

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