Seoul mayor blames housing, prosecution reform for Lee's falling approval
Version 2: Two more outlets, Kukmin Ilbo and Dong-A Ilbo, have published coverage, with Dong-A Ilbo adding that about 40,000 homes were permitted in Seoul in January-August with more than half through redevelopment projects, and quoting Oh saying Jongmyo's value would rise many times over once the Seun district is redeveloped.
In short
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said on Oct 7 that President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating is falling sharply, calling it “an appeal close to a desperate cry from citizens”, and blamed housing costs, the stock market and prosecution reform. At a press conference at Seoul City Hall marking 100 days of his ninth elected term, he reaffirmed a target of breaking ground on 310,000 homes by 2031 and said new evidence had been submitted in his appeal trial, with a ruling he said was expected this month.
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Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon held a press conference at Seoul City Hall on Oct 7 marking 100 days of his ninth elected term, where he said President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating is falling sharply and described it as “an appeal close to a desperate cry from citizens”, according to Newsis, Asia Economy, Hankook Ilbo and Yonhap. Kukmin Ilbo had carried the same remark earlier in the day. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
Oh attributed the decline mainly to housing. He said higher housing spending cuts into disposable income and living costs, and that a government which failed to keep home sale prices and jeonse and monthly rents low cannot expect a good assessment. He added that jeonse supply is now hard to find, calling the relative fall in living standards the biggest cause. Dong-A Ilbo reported he said about 40,000 homes were permitted in Seoul in January-August, more than half of them through redevelopment projects, and he reaffirmed a target of breaking ground on 310,000 homes by 2031, calling for a temporary lifting of union membership transfer rules and higher redevelopment floor-area ratios. [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]
Newsis reported that Oh also pointed to the stock market, saying government policies to buoy share prices “boomeranged”, leaving investors who entered late and lacked experience with unexpected losses. On prosecution reform, he said the government's push for “검수완박”, or stripping prosecutors of investigative powers, has left the public anxious, arguing that trained investigators are being excluded from investigations and that power concentrated on one side breeds corruption. Hankook Ilbo reported he added that the new serious crimes investigation bureau opened without a proper head, detention facilities, systems or staff. [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
Oh also addressed his own legal case. Hankook Ilbo reported that he was indicted over allegations he received opinion poll results from Myung Tae-kyun ahead of the 2021 Seoul mayoral by-election and had businessman Kim Han-jung pay 33 million won in survey costs, that a first-instance court found part of the charges guilty and handed down a 10 million won fine and a 21 million won forfeiture, and that an appeal ruling is scheduled for Oct 23. Oh said he was sorry to be in court, that new evidence not seen at the first trial had been submitted on appeal, and that “the time of truth is approaching”; Yonhap reported him saying the special prosecution team that investigated him would face accountability. [ 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
He rebutted President Lee's post on X that housing permits in the Seoul metropolitan area are rising because of a government “speed drive”, saying Seoul had worked hard for five years and that it was unreasonable to present the increase as the government's doing. He said he had asked to meet the new land minister soon, and repeated his pledge on housing supply. On the stalled Seun 4-gu redevelopment, he said the planned building's height would not undermine Jongmyo's heritage value, and Dong-A Ilbo quoted him saying Jongmyo's value would rise ten- or a hundred-fold once the site is redeveloped into green space. [ 8 , 9 ]
Oh set out his ninth-term direction under the slogan “삶의 질 특별시, 서울” (Special City of Quality of Life, Seoul), saying he would be judged on whether the city's growth changes citizens' lives rather than on growth figures alone. He pointed to the Han River renaissance, road undergrounding and the reorganisation of the Changgyeonggung and Jongmyo area, and said he would judge all policies by how citizens experience them. [ 5 , 8 , 9 ]
Why it matters
The remarks put Seoul's mayor publicly at odds with the president over housing, financial-market and prosecution policy, and they come weeks before an appeal ruling that could cost him his office. Oh's own pledge on housing supply depends on regulatory changes he is seeking from the central government, which he said had not yet agreed to meet him in detail.
Key facts
- Oh Se-hoon held a press conference at Seoul City Hall on Oct 7 marking 100 days of his ninth elected term. [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]
- Oh said President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating is falling sharply and described it as “an appeal close to a desperate cry from citizens”. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He cited rising home sale prices and jeonse and monthly rents, and a jeonse supply he said was hard to find, as the main cause. [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He said the government's prosecution reform, known as “검수완박”, has left the public anxious. [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He reaffirmed a goal of breaking ground on 310,000 homes in Seoul by 2031 and called for regulatory easing on redevelopment and reconstruction. [ 5 , 9 ]
- He said new evidence not seen in the first trial had been submitted in his appeal; Hankook Ilbo reported the appeal ruling is scheduled for Oct 23. [ 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He presented the ninth-term city slogan “삶의 질 특별시, 서울” (Special City of Quality of Life, Seoul). [ 5 , 8 , 9 ]
- Dong-A Ilbo reported he said about 40,000 homes were permitted in Seoul in January-August, more than half of them through redevelopment projects. [ 9 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Oh Se-hoon held a press conference at Seoul City Hall on Oct 7 marking 100 days of his ninth elected term. [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]
- Oh said President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating was falling sharply and described it as an appeal close to a desperate cry from citizens. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- Oh cited housing costs, including sale prices and jeonse and monthly rents, as a cause of the approval decline. [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- Oh criticised the government's prosecution reform and said it has caused public anxiety. [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- Oh said new evidence had been submitted in his appeal trial and that he was awaiting the result. [ 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- Oh reaffirmed a plan to break ground on 310,000 homes in Seoul by 2031. [ 5 , 9 ]
- Oh presented “삶의 질 특별시, 서울” as the slogan of his ninth-term city administration. [ 5 , 8 , 9 ]
Still unclear
- Oh's criticism of the government's stock market policy as a boomerang that hurt late-entering retail investors. Reported only by Newsis among the documents, so it is a single-outlet claim.
- The exact starting time of the press conference. The documents say only that it took place on the morning of Oct 7.
- A proposal for Jeonju to co-host the 2036 Summer Olympics, mentioned at the start of a Newsis follow-up report. The single document's text is cut off before Oh's position on the proposal is given.
- Whether the presidential office or government ministries responded to Oh's criticism. No document reports a response from the government.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Kukmin Ilbo publishes an item headlined with Oh's comment on the quality-of-life city and the president's falling approval rating. [ 1 ]
- Kukmin Ilbo publishes a second item on the same remarks. [ 2 ]
- Newsis publishes a breaking-news item headlined with Oh's comment that the president's approval rating is falling sharply. [ 3 ]
- Newsis reports Oh's remarks from the 100-day press conference, including criticism of housing, the stock market and prosecution reform. [ 4 ]
- Asia Economy reports the same remarks and adds his pledge to break ground on 310,000 homes by 2031. [ 5 ]
- Hankook Ilbo reports the remarks with details of the first-instance ruling and the Oct 23 appeal sentencing. [ 6 ]
- Newsis publishes a follow-up including Oh's remarks that new evidence was submitted in the appeal trial. [ 7 ]
- Yonhap reports Oh's trial remarks, his rebuttal of the president's housing-supply post and the new city slogan. [ 8 ]
- Dong-A Ilbo reports the 100-day press conference, the 310,000-home target and Oh's remark that Jongmyo's value would rise many times over. [ 9 ]