Hong Ji-sun, nominee for Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, stated that her purchase of a home last year was for genuine demand due to the expiration of a jeonse lease rather than for capital gains.

Regarding criticisms that she failed to submit documents related to the grounds for her military service disposition, she explained, "I did not refuse to submit the documents; rather, the records were lost at the Military Manpower Administration, making submission impossible."

During a confirmation hearing held by the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee of the National Assembly today (16th), Nominee Hong addressed the issue of submitting military service-related documents, saying, "I requested the documents from the Military Manpower Administration, but because the records were lost and had to be rewritten, most of them are blank."

At the hearing that day, criticisms were raised that Nominee Hong had not submitted adjudication records that could verify the specific reasons for her receiving a Grade 4 supplementary service disposition.

Nominee Hong explained, "When I received the adjudication at the time, I submitted all diagnosis records and other documents, but those items were all lost. Since I have no choice but to speak based entirely on my own memory, it was difficult to submit official documents."

She added regarding the documents rewritten by the Military Manpower Administration after the loss, "Since submission has been requested, I will have them submitted by this morning."

Questions regarding Nominee Hong's past history of living in jeonse residences were also raised during the hearing.

With President Lee Jae-myung having referred to jeonse as "a type of private financing unique to South Korea," attention was drawn to the fact that Nominee Hong had lived in jeonse properties multiple times before purchasing an apartment in Seoul last year.

Nominee Hong explained, "During my 30 years of public service, I lived in jeonse homes without owning a house for about 20 years. I moved multiple times due to personal circumstances, such as work locations in Uijeongbu and Suwon, and my spouse working in Incheon."

Addressing the suggestion that she may have increased her wealth through frequent jeonse moves, Nominee Hong said, "Moving jeonse homes does not increase your deposit; rather, broker fees and moving costs are incurred."

She continued, "The hardest part of living in jeonse was having to move every two or four years against my will, which was extremely difficult."

Regarding her purchase of an apartment in Sindorim, Seoul, last year, she explained that she decided to buy it as she was facing a move due to the expiration of her jeonse contract.

Nominee Hong stated, "When I looked into other jeonse homes, nearby jeonse prices exceeded 900 million won, and in slightly further areas, I could purchase a home for around 1 billion won. Since I was in a situation where I had to get a jeonse loan anyway, moving continuously became too difficult, so I took out a bit more loan to purchase the property."

She further explained, "I did not move seeking capital gains, but purchased it because I was facing a situation where I had to move against my will yet again at the time my jeonse contract expired."

(Photo: Yonhap News)