Seoul Urges Opposition to Stop 'Politically Motivated Attacks' Over Hangang Bus Allegations

The Seoul Metropolitan Government has urged the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea to halt what it called unfounded political attacks regarding the Hangang Bus project.

In a statement issued under the spokesperson's name, the city government said, "The Democratic Party is deliberately undermining Seoul's efforts to uncover the truth while ignoring basic facts."

The city explained, "We proactively requested a public interest audit from the Board of Audit and Inspection on October 2 of last year, and even after it was dismissed, we continued our own internal investigations dozens of times—including data requests, on-site visits, interviews with relevant individuals, and phone calls—right up until the parliamentary audit in October."

It added, "On the 16th, we officially requested an investigation by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency and decided to provide all related materials. Dismissing all these truth-finding procedures and attacking us by claiming that 'investigations were delayed for a year' is nothing more than political agitation."

During the National Assembly Public Administration and Security Committee's audit of the Seoul Metropolitan Government on the 15th, Democratic Party lawmakers raised suspicions that suspicious money flows involving a broker were detected in project funds paid to the Hangang Bus manufacturer, and that part of that money may have been funneled to a senior official at Seoul Housing & Communities Corporation (SH).

Regarding criticisms that the audit request did not mention allegations of a 320 million won rebate, the Seoul Metropolitan Government explained, "At the time, we were aware of the allegation and did our utmost to ensure an active and objective investigation, which led to our proactive decision to request an audit from the Board of Audit and Inspection."

"Instead of jumping to conclusions about unverified allegations, we sought the judgment of an independent audit agency regarding overall suspicions of illegalities and irregularities, such as the selection of contractors, delays in ship construction, and increased costs," it added.

Addressing allegations of covering up irregularities or ordering the destruction of investigative data, the city stated, "We ask that you first present concrete and objective evidence. Slapping sensational labels like 'gate' onto unproven allegations does not make them true."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.