Some interior views of a sauna and a secret passage inside the Yongsan presidential office during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration have been made public.
Presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik appeared on the YouTube show "Kim Ou-joon's News Factory" on the 2nd and released photos of a secret passage inside the Yongsan presidential office and a sauna in the office.
Kang said, "Once this is torn down soon, the records will disappear, so we took photos for the record."
Photos of the secret passage show a spot right next to it to park a car and a roof installed to shield from rain or snow. An opaque wall is also installed so it is impossible to tell who is entering the presidential office through the passage.
The end of the passage connects to the first floor of the presidential office, and the door bears a sign from the Presidential Security Service that reads, "Door closed — no entry except for authorized personnel."
Kang said, "Even when I was at the presidential office as the head of the institution, I never used that route," adding, "Only the former president Yoon used it."
Kang said the secret passage was built with 380 million won from the Ministry of National Defense budget, not the presidential office budget. He continued, "Controversy over tardiness continued from May 2022, and that construction began on July 27. The secret entrance was completed on Nov. 23," adding, "(Former President Yoon) stopped the so-called doorstepping two days before this was completed."
He added that "it appears (the doorstepping) was halted when it was completed."
Photos of an inner room and a sauna inside the presidential office were also released. The inner room is equipped with an extra-large bed and nightstands and is connected to the sauna. The sauna is a dry sauna made of cypress materials and has a wall-mounted TV. At the time of installation, the Presidential Security Service was said to have proposed a cash transaction to the vendor.
Kang said, "There are cases where a head of an institution's office has a small inner room for a quick nap or simple washing," but added, "I don't think there has ever been a case of a sauna in an office. It's like they built a small hotel, so I was surprised."