“Oh se-hoon caused the collapse in housing supply”: Democratic Party accuses Seoul mayor of NIMBY

The Democratic Party of Korea criticized Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon at a floor strategy meeting on Aug. 7, blaming him for the sharp decline in new housing supply in Seoul.
Floor leader Han Byung-do said, “The person who fueled market confusion by lifting and then redesignating land transaction permit zones is now raising his voice to attack the government.”
Policy Committee Chair Han Jeoung-ae said, “Construction starts for apartments and villas in Seoul have fallen by two-thirds since 2023,” adding that “this is the result of Mayor Oh Se-hoon’s policies.”
Jeon Yong-gi, the party’s chief deputy floor spokesperson, said Oh had tried to block the government’s efforts to increase housing supply through the Yongsan International Business District and additional releases of greenbelt land.
“Yesterday, he even brought up a plan to use the Yongsan Children’s Garden that had not yet been officially announced and opposed it in advance,” Jeon said. “He won’t build housing himself, and when someone else tries to build it, he stands in the way.”
Oh had criticized the government’s housing supply policies a day earlier at a public forum on normalizing the real estate market held at Seoul City Hall.
Regarding the possibility that the government could use land around the Yongsan Children’s Garden for housing development, Oh said, “That must never happen,” adding, “I cannot agree to it.”