Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said on the 18th that "the controversy over construction at GTX (metropolitan express railway)-A Samsung Station during the local election process will go down as a dark chapter showing how a government-controlled election using the media operates."
On social media (SNS) that day, Oh posted an article titled "This is exactly a government-controlled election" and stated accordingly.
Oh said, "There is a chronic ailment that recurs whenever the Democratic Party is in power," and added, "Instead of fighting elections on competence, it is the old politics that try to shake up the race with stale schemes and agitation."
He went on to say, "The same thing happened again this time, without fail."
What Oh pointed out on SNS was MBC's reporting related to GTX-A. He said, "From May 15 to June 3, MBC poured out reports 76 times," and added, "By slapping a false frame that the Seoul Metropolitan Government intentionally concealed and neglected the matter, it seriously undermined trust in Seoul's administration."
He continued, "Since 2022, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has introduced and been operating a video record management system at all construction sites," and said, "From the outset, an organized cover-up is structurally impossible."
Oh also said, "The Seoul Urban Infrastructure Headquarters received a report on construction errors from the supervision team and the contractor on Nov. 10 last year, and after going through a review report by the supervision team and advisory meetings with external experts, finalized a column reinforcement plan on Dec. 30," adding, "According to the final column reinforcement construction plan submitted by Hyundai Engineering & Construction on Mar. 17 this year, when the column reinforcement method was applied, the bearing capacity improved from 58,604 kN to 60,915 kN. Performance exceeding the original design standard was secured. This information was shared with Korea National Railway and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport."
In addition, Oh said, "The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) also conducted its own emergency safety inspection with external experts," and "as a result, it concluded that the crack in the B5 slab was not directly related to the missing column rebar and that there were no safety issues."
He added, "This is consistent with the judgment the Seoul Metropolitan Government reached over several months through expert reviews and consultations."
Oh said, "But as the election shifted into high gear, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) abruptly changed its stance," adding, "After confirming safety on its own and even resuming test runs, it suddenly spoke of a possible construction halt, stoking public anxiety."
He continued, "MBC manufactured the suspicion, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) amplified the controversy despite knowing there were no safety issues, and the Democratic Party held three parliamentary standing committee sessions during the campaign to turn it into political strife," adding, "A triangular formation was set in motion in which the public broadcaster, the administration, and the ruling party moved as one solely for the purpose of the Democratic Party candidate's election victory."
Oh said, "This is exactly collusion between power and the press, and a government-controlled election," adding, "MBC ended up being used as a tool of propaganda and agitation for a government-controlled election. The victim of a government-controlled election is not a single candidate. It is the entire public."