“They Even Cut 10 Million Won for the Employees’ Sports Event”... Choo Mi-ae Faces Controversy Over 1.2 Billion-Won Official Residence

[Financial News] Choo Mi-ae, governor of Gyeonggi Province, declared a “fiscal emergency” and tightened the province’s belt by cutting even employee welfare spending. She is now facing controversy after reports that she is using an apartment leased for about 1.2 billion won as her official residence.
According to Yonhap News Agency and other outlets on the 6th, Gyeonggi Province signed a lease in June for a 156-square-meter apartment near the provincial government office, equivalent to a 47-pyeong unit, with a deposit of 1.22 billion won. Choo moved into the apartment in July, shortly after taking office. After the arrangement became known, criticism of hypocrisy emerged within the provincial government.
On the 5th of last month, Choo declared a fiscal emergency and drafted a supplementary budget proposal involving 546.5 billion won in expenditure restructuring to address the fiscal crisis. The province also cut welfare spending, including participation expenses for the employees’ sports event, and postponed the regular personnel reshuffle for the second half of the year until January next year, citing organizational restructuring. Against this backdrop, news that Choo was using an apartment leased for about 1.2 billion won as her official residence triggered a wave of complaints.
Critical posts targeting Choo were repeatedly uploaded to “Wagle Wagle,” the anonymous bulletin board for provincial government employees. One post asked, “Is it right for her to use an official residence worth more than 1.2 billion won by herself while saying there is a fiscal crisis?”
An official from the provincial government employees’ union said, “There was already considerable concern over cuts to employee welfare spending, including a 10 million won reduction in participation expenses for the National Government Employees’ Sports Festival. Now, following the postponement of the regular personnel reshuffle, the issue of the 1.2 billion-won official residence has also emerged. As Choo is being compared with former Governor Kim Dong-yeon, who lived in a leased apartment at his own expense, employees’ dissatisfaction over this hypocrisy is growing.”
A Gyeonggi Province official responded, “We obtained the official residence in the closest possible location to ensure the smooth operation of provincial affairs,” adding, “The contract was concluded in accordance with the relevant regulations.”
[email protected] Kim Su-yeon Reporter