Oh Se-hoon Attacks Ultra-Expansionary Budget as "Abandoning Real Estate"... Park Hongkeun Fires Back: "Look at Seoul's Inconsistent Administration First"

“Stoking Inflation and Real Estate Anxiety” vs “Future Investment with Reduced Treasury Bonds”


Clashing over Responsibility for Housing Supply… “Self-Contradictory Administration” vs “Checking Ambitions for Higher Office”

The government’s record-high 2027 budget bill, set at 821 trillion won, has sparked a direct clash between Minister of Strategy and Finance Park Hongkeun and Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon. Mayor Oh opened fire, calling the expansionary fiscal plan a populist, ultra-expansionary budget aimed at covering up failures in real estate policy. In response, Minister Park immediately countered, saying this is a sound investment for the future as total revenue growth far outpaces expenditure increases, and pointedly took aim at the mayor’s policy missteps and political maneuvers.

Hongkeun Park, Minister of Planning and Budget, is speaking at the 2027 budget party-government meeting held at the National Assembly Members' Office Building on the 25th. 2026.8.25 Photo by Hyunmin Kim

On the 1st, Seoul Mayor Oh Sehun visited the site related to the Mirinae House project at Jamsil Le-Elle in Songpa-gu, Seoul, and held a meeting with newlywed couples. Mirinae House is a low birthrate housing policy by Seoul City that allows residents to extend their stay up to 20 years upon the birth of a child and provides opportunities to purchase housing at prices lower than market value. September 1, 2026 Photo by Hyunmin Kim

On September 4, through his Facebook page, Mayor Oh sharply criticized the plan, stating, “The government has drafted next year’s budget at a record 821 trillion won, an ultra-expansionary budget that is a whopping 93 trillion won larger than this year.” He continued, “If you look at real economic indicators, the liquidity ratio and house prices clearly move together. How are we supposed to understand the contradiction of tightening funds on one side and flooding the market with money on the other?” He then added, “I suspect the intention is to placate the public’s anger—worsened by failed real estate policies—through fiscal spending,” calling for a rigorous review by the National Assembly. Mayor Oh further pointed out, “In Seoul, it is already difficult to supply enough housing in the short term to meet demand, and expectations for price increases are rising. The government is effectively pouring more fuel—liquidity—onto the real estate fire.”

Minister Park responded immediately on his X (formerly Twitter) account, dismissing Oh’s comments as “utter nonsense.” Minister Park stated, “Next year, total revenue is set to grow by 30.4 percent, which far outpaces the total expenditure growth of 12.8 percent. The net issuance of government bonds will also decrease by more than 12 trillion won, from 108.4 trillion won in this year’s supplementary budget to 96.3 trillion won next year.” He emphasized, “Rather than expanding overall demand for economic stimulus, the focus has been on strengthening supply capabilities that raise potential growth rates, such as artificial intelligence and advanced industries. Trying to brand expansionary fiscal policy as unconditional money printing is nothing more than backward ideological criticism.”

In addition, Minister Park directly targeted Seoul's administration, explaining that the housing budget for next year has been increased to 44 trillion won and 6.2 trillion won has been newly allocated for universal rental housing to support the August 13 package of measures. Minister Park criticized, “What has Mayor Oh actually done for housing stability in Seoul during his term? It is inconsistent to propose relocating the Tancheon Water Reclamation Center as an alternative while opposing housing supply in Yongsan Park and still claim to solve the housing problem.” He pointed out, “Mayor Oh is also not free from responsibility for stoking market anxiety through inconsistent administrative decisions, such as repeatedly designating and lifting land transaction permit zones.”

Minister Park also fired directly at the mayor’s political motives. He said, “Rather than offering alternatives to improve the lives of Seoul citizens, the mayor seems more focused on sowing conflict—not for the city’s administration, but as a move for his next step in politics. Instead of obstructing the government, I urge Seoul City to focus on what it should be doing first.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.