Seoul District Government Official Asks, "What Shall We Do?"

Public Officials at a Seoul District Office under the 7th Mayoral Term Receive Audit from the Board of Audit and Inspection for Excessive Floor Area Ratio Provision; Approval Line Officials Feel Anxious

Controversy Arises as the District Mayor's Excessive Pressure Leads to Replacement of Deputy Mayor ... Approval Officials at the Time Under Audit

On the 11th, heavy rain has been falling throughout Seoul all day. The photo is not related to the article content.

"I am worried that the responsible public officials might get hurt."

A senior official from a Seoul autonomous district said this to a reporter on the afternoon of the 10th.

The incident is as follows.

During the 7th mayoral term, the district mayor of a Seoul district aggressively pushed for approval of officetel construction within the area, which faced strong opposition even at the time.

The project became problematic as it attempted to excessively increase the floor area ratio on the condition of donating a museum to the district.

Recently, the Board of Audit and Inspection became aware of this and is reported to have completed a preliminary audit and is preparing for the main audit.

At the time, the district council also caused issues by putting the construction plan on hold.

Despite this, the district mayor forcefully pushed the project forward, even issuing personnel changes such as reassigning the team leader.

In particular, a design plan was proposed to place the museum underground rather than above ground, which raised strong opposition voices at the time, questioning the accessibility for residents if the museum were located underground.

A senior official from the autonomous district said, "At the time, including the deputy mayor, the responsible managers and team leaders opposed this, saying it would definitely cause problems later."

However, the district mayor proceeded with the project even replacing the deputy mayor who opposed it.

As this happened, the atmosphere in the autonomous district was not good.

The district office executive is reported to have requested the department heads at the time to "reveal the facts as they are during the audit process."

If the Board of Audit and Inspection determines that there are legal issues with this case, there is concern that not only the higher-ups but also the officials involved in the approval process, including bureau chiefs, section chiefs, and team leaders, will face legal penalties.

Another mid-level executive said, "Even though there was a lot of opposition at the time, it is unclear why the district mayor pushed it through," adding, "I am worried that the officials in the approval line might get hurt."

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