Cheon Haram: "Four Kang Shin-chul Family Members Received 'Demolition Resident Tickets'... Acquired Three Apartments in Seoul"

Three Seoul Apartments Allocated to Nominee, Father, and Brother
Cheon Haram: "Roughly 3 Billion Won in Capital Gains... Nominee Must Withdraw"

Cheon Haram, acting chairman of the Reform New Party, stated on September 10th, "The entire family of Kang Sincheol, nominee for the Minister of National Defense, was systematically engaged in an 'operation to secure housing vouchers for displaced residents,'" while urging the nominee to withdraw his candidacy and return the apartment.

According to Cheon, in 2008, Kang Sincheol, along with his father, older brother, and aunt—four family members in total—were selected as recipients of special housing allocation for displaced residents, each receiving what is commonly referred to as a ‘voucher for displaced residents.’ Among them, the nominee, his father, and older brother each acquired an apartment in Seoul through the special allocation program for displaced persons.

Cheon Haram, member of the Reform New Party, is holding a press conference on the 10th at the National Assembly Communication Office regarding the allegations of real estate investment by the family of Kang Sincheol, the nominee for the Minister of National Defense. Photo by Yonhap News

On March 21, 2008, Kang Sincheol and his spouse, along with his father who was living in Jeju, registered their residence at Kang’s house in Cheonwang-dong, Guro-gu, Seoul. Three days later, his father changed his address to the neighboring house, thereby separating the household. Subsequently, Kang Sincheol received a special allocation for Seocho Nature Hill Complex 3, while his father received one in Complex 2. His older brother acquired a unit in Cheonwang Yeonji Town Complex 1 through the Cheonwang 2 District special allocation, and his aunt applied for a special allocation in the Umyeon 2 District.

In particular, it was revealed that two days before applying for the special allocation, Kang’s father had donated his house in Seogwipo, Jeju to another person, only to buy it back two years later for 300,000 won. Cheon argued, "This appears to be a temporary transfer into another person’s name to meet the single-home ownership requirement."

Cheon estimated that the total profit the nominee, his father, and older brother gained from the three apartments amounted to approximately 3 billion won. He criticized, "They turned a system meant for people who lost their homes into a means for family investment," and demanded, "Kang Sincheol should immediately step down and return the apartment."

Cheon further remarked, "I would rather trust Kang Sincheol with my real estate investments than with national defense," adding, "Someone so dedicated to real estate investment would be more suitable as the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport than as the Minister of National Defense."

In response, the nominee’s side stated, "That address in Cheonwang-dong is where Kang Sincheol was born and raised, and it was a place where the candidate and his family—including his spouse—frequently stayed," denying allegations of fraudulent change of residence and illicit housing application. They also countered, "At the time, Kang was deployed to Iraq, and only his spouse and children were staying at her family’s home," disputing the claim that Yangji Village in Bundang was the nominee’s actual place of residence.

They further explained, "The nominee, his father, older brother, aunt, and other relatives who were living together in Cheonwang-dong were all legal homeowners in the area and valid recipients of the displaced resident compensation. The application for the special housing allocation was conducted properly according to procedure."

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