Infrastructure for Successor President?…Renewed Dispute Over Withdrawn 'Yeongbingwan Construction'

Kwon Seong-dong "For the successor president rather than President Yoon..."
Repeatedly insists on 'State Guest House needed' despite ruling party's plan withdrawal
Opposition recalls Mrs. Kim's remark "They will move the State Guest House" in 'offensive' response

Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, is attending the party floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 16th and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] The ruling and opposition parties continue to debate over the construction of the presidential office's new guesthouse, which sparked controversy as a 'waste of tax money.' Facing a flood of criticism, President Yoon Suk-yeol withdrew the construction plan within a day, but the People Power Party insists daily that a guesthouse is necessary for 'national dignity' and 'infrastructure development.' The Democratic Party of Korea is launching fierce attacks, suspecting that First Lady Kim Keon-hee is behind the push for the new guesthouse.

On the 18th, Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, stated on Facebook, "Discussions about the national guesthouse must continue. The area around the Yongsan office should be developed into a space commemorating those who dedicated themselves to Korea, and a national guesthouse should be established there." He added, "Although some criticize the large construction budget, renting hotels or shuttling between the War Memorial and the National Museum also costs money," and said, "there are many positive factors to consider, such as national dignity, diplomatic infrastructure, security issues, and budget appropriateness."

He continued, "Some suggest using the Blue House guesthouse, but that contradicts the promise to return the Blue House to the people," emphasizing, "Even if the guesthouse is constructed immediately, it will take at least 2 to 3 years. Therefore, the guesthouse is infrastructure for the successor president rather than for President Yoon."

The fact that the presidential office is pushing to build a new guesthouse with a budget of 87.8 billion won was revealed on the 15th. The presidential office explained the reason for the construction, saying, "After returning the Blue House to the people and moving to the Yongsan presidential office, official events were held at places like the Defense Convention Center, but many evaluated that these venues did not match the national dignity."

However, criticism of 'hasty promotion' arose mainly from the opposition. They pointed out that moving the presidential office to Yongsan while leaving the Blue House and then building a new guesthouse is a 'waste of tax money.' During a press conference on March 20, when he was president-elect, President Yoon stated that the total cost of relocating the presidential office was 49.6 billion won.

However, it has been found that about 30 billion won of the budget was already diverted from the Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and the National Police Agency for official residence construction and security unit relocation. The 87.8 billion won budget for the new guesthouse is an additional cost on top of this. The lack of a public consultation process to gather public opinion on such a huge budget for the new guesthouse was also pointed out as a problem. Following opposition backlash and negative public opinion, President Yoon ordered a full withdrawal of the guesthouse construction plan on the 16th.

President Yoon Suk-yeol is arriving at the Presidential Office building in Yongsan, Seoul, on the morning of the 16th, responding to questions from the press. [Image source=Yonhap News]

However, despite the plan's withdrawal, the Democratic Party is pressing the government and ruling party to disclose detailed information about the decision-making process behind the guesthouse construction. The Democratic Party suspects that First Lady Kim Keon-hee is behind the plan, citing a '7-hour phone call transcript' between Kim and a reporter from 'Seoul Voice' during the last presidential election, in which Kim mentioned 'relocating the guesthouse.'

Park Seong-jun, spokesperson for the Democratic Party, said at a briefing at the National Assembly communication office on the 18th, "While the public's reasonable suspicion may appear as delusion to the People Power Party," he criticized, "If the government intended to build a new guesthouse, it should have first persuaded the public. However, after going through the Cabinet meeting and budgeting, they failed to explain confidently to the people."

He added, "Because the government and ruling party's response is so inadequate, the public can only recall First Lady Kim's remark, 'Yes, we will move the guesthouse!' Naturally, suspicion that the budget was allocated under her direction grows, but is it responsible for the government and ruling party to dismiss the public's suspicion as 'collective delusion'?"

Former Blue House protocol secretary Tak Hyun-min also criticized on Facebook on the 19th, "The statements made when moving the presidential office to Yongsan, such as 'there are no problems,' 'all functions have alternatives,' and 'costs can be minimized,' how have they changed? The public's suspicion can only deepen," he said, adding, "The reason why various national and presidential events under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration have become shabby is not just a problem of 'space.' Closing the Blue House without any alternatives, and lacking measures and persuasion skills, their amateurism is a bigger cause."

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