'Straw' remark on fire department finances 'flippant,' lawmaker says
Democratic Party bears responsibility for incomplete legislation
Reform Party lawmaker Lee Jun-seok sharpened his criticism of Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae on Tuesday, saying she had already entered lame-duck territory just three months into her tenure over her remarks describing fire department finances as a "straw" draining provincial coffers.
Speaking on KBS Radio 1's "Jeongyeok Sisa," Lee said he had some sympathy for Choo's concerns about Gyeonggi Province's fiscal structure, but argued she was picking the wrong fight. "She should not be fighting with the fire department — she needs to persuade President Lee Jae Myung and the Democratic Party, who control the budget," he said.
On the province's financial situation, Lee said Choo appeared to have discovered upon taking office that there was simply no money to spend. He noted that areas such as Pyeongtaek and Hwaseong were enjoying a semiconductor boom, yet not a single won of that revenue was flowing into provincial coffers.
"Based on Hwaseong's figures, Samsung Electronics will pay between 1.8 trillion and 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion) in taxes next year, while the city's original budget is around 3.7 trillion won," he added. "Disparities within Gyeonggi Province are widening, and from Choo's perspective she wants to make an issue of that."
Lee was critical, however, of the way Choo had chosen to handle the fire department finance issue. "It was the Democratic Party that converted firefighters to national civil servant status, and it was also the Democratic Party that failed to simultaneously secure national funding for the fire service when making that conversion," he said. "This situation has arisen because of the Democratic Party's incomplete legislation."
He was particularly scathing about Choo's use of the word "straw," calling it flippant. "What an impressive political career she has — she served as party leader and as justice minister," Lee said. "For someone of that stature to describe fire department finances simply as a straw, saying something that could wound firefighters, is flippant."
He added that voters who elected Choo as governor had likely hoped she would draw on her long political experience to manage the province in a steady, reliable manner rather than dazzle them with flashy ideas — and that she had now completely shattered that expectation.
Lee said Choo had also left herself politically exposed. "By declaring a fiscal crisis while launching new projects, she has given critics far more ammunition," he said. "I think she lost her grip on provincial governance sooner than anyone expected."
Lee argued that Choo's political offensive should have been directed at the government and the ruling party. "She is a senior Democratic Party figure and a former party leader," he said. "Her political role should have been to tell Democratic Party lawmakers: 'Let's pour national funds into the fire service starting with this budget session — let's make sure firefighters can work safely.'"
Turning to the background of the Greater Seoul Residential Innovation Forum he leads, Lee said the broad opposition camp needed to come together and start presenting alternatives. He called for lifting restrictions on reconstruction and redevelopment to boost housing supply, easing lending regulations and revisiting property taxation.
Lee particularly urged reform of the acquisition and registration tax system, saying the country should shift toward a transaction-centered model. "If someone moves within the same living area — not for investment purposes but simply to change homes — the acquisition and registration tax should be reduced to near-zero for up to two such moves over a lifetime," he said.
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