Chong Won-o, the Democratic Party of Korea's candidate for Seoul mayor, apologized for delays in the Hangdang District 7 redevelopment project.
During the Seoul mayoral TV debate that began at 11 p.m. on the 28th, Chong was asked about the delay in the Hangdang District 7 redevelopment project and said, "Each agency of Seoul City and Seongdong District has parts for which it is responsible, so you should look more closely rather than speaking only from the one-sided perspective of the district office," but added, "I offer a deep apology for the parts that were delayed."
The Hangdang District 7 redevelopment complex in Seongdong District has not received final approval for completion, turning it into a flashpoint in this local election. Oh Se-hoon of the People Power Party and Kim Jeong-cheol of the Reform Party criticize it as an example showing candidate Chong Won-o's incompetence.
In the debate, candidate Kim Jeong-cheol also said, "For Hangdang District 7, Seongdong District said it could substitute a daycare center with cash, so it received 1.7 billion won in cash, then returned it two years later, and now it is withholding the completion approval on the grounds that the daycare center was not built." Kim asked, "The project is being delayed because of the district office, so is the 'step-by-step development' project that candidate Chong talks about feasible?"
In response, Chong said, "There are parts that Seoul City and Seongdong District respectively need to resolve," adding, "Seoul City unilaterally wanted a day care center on the contributed acceptance site. In that process, there was no agreement with the association, which took eight months."
Chong said, "Even though the association prepared a solution, there were aspects in which progress did not go well," adding, "Now that a solution has been prepared, if the association proceeds accordingly, it will go well."