Ruling and Opposition Parties Clash Over Yoon President-Elect's Office Relocation

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The ruling and opposition parties have intensified their disputes over President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol's plan to relocate the presidential office to Yongsan.

At the parliamentary confirmation hearing for Defense Minister nominee Lee Jong-seop on the 4th, Democratic Party whip Ki Dong-min stated during questioning, "When the Ministry of National Defense, currently scattered across five locations, is later managed in a consolidated building, an unimaginable scale of taxpayers' money will inevitably be wasted," adding, "Even after the hearing concludes, a comprehensive appeal from the National Defense Committee is necessary to dispel these concerns."

Fellow party member Ahn Kyu-baek said, "The President-elect claims the office relocation is to strengthen communication with the public, but he made the decision unilaterally without public consensus," and added, "I think this is contradictory."

On the other hand, People Power Party lawmaker Shin Won-sik said, "Compared to the national benefits gained by moving the presidential office to Yongsan, the risks and costs are much smaller," and stated, "Once the new minister takes office, we will thoroughly review whether there is a security gap as the Democratic Party claims at an appropriate time, and if necessary, we will promote a bipartisan visit to the site."

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