Gyeonggi Governor Choo Miae Faces First Parliamentary Audit; Fiscal Crisis and Official Residence Controversy Under Scrutiny

First Parliamentary Audit at Gyeonggi Provincial Government
Criticism from Fellow Party Lawmakers Also Expected

Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae faced her first parliamentary audit since taking office on October 13. The province's fiscal crisis, its most pressing issue, and controversy over Choo's official residence are key points of contention. There is also interest in whether tensions within the ruling camp over prosecution reform, including the appointment of the first chief of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency (SCIA), will come to light.

At a National Assembly Public Administration and Security Committee audit of Gyeonggi Province at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government in Suwon at 10 a.m. on October 13, Choo said, "The amount of money we need to spend keeps increasing, while the revenue base needed to support it remains unstable." She added, "Despite the difficult circumstances, Gyeonggi Province is focused on cutting nonessential spending and protecting essential budgets for residents' livelihoods that are directly tied to their quality of life."

Citing a fiscal emergency, Choo drew up a large-scale supplementary budget with spending cuts and sharply reduced funding for programs supporting residents' livelihoods. Controversy arose after it emerged that she had signed a contract for an official residence worth around 1.2 billion won.

Choo Mi-ae takes the oath as a witness during the National Assembly Public Administration and Security Committee's parliamentary audit of Gyeonggi Province at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government building in Yeongtong-gu, Suwon, on the 13th. Joint Press Corps.

In a procedural remark, People Power Party lawmaker Park Sang-woong said, "Since Governor Choo took office, I requested a list of her directives requiring budget expenditures and documents related to the contract for the governor's official residence. But Gyeonggi Province refused to provide both sets of documents, saying they concerned matters that fall under the exclusive authority of local governments and were therefore not subject to disclosure."

Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Gwang-hee said, "Does having the right goal justify the means as well?" He added, "Isn't it putting the cart before the horse to declare that the province is effectively bankrupt and notify cities and counties of cuts to their projects before consulting with the National Assembly or city, county and provincial councils?"

Meanwhile, Democratic Party lawmaker Song Young-gil took aim at Governor Choo on the CBS Radio program 'Park Jae-hong's One-on-One Show' the previous evening, saying, "If lawmakers from the ruling party don't respect and stand by her, what can opposition lawmakers be expected to do?" He added, "We shouldn't give them this kind of pretext."

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