Former Seongdong District Mayor Jeong Won-oh, who resigned to run for Seoul mayor, has pledged to make a comprehensive underground safety survey his first official act if elected. He promised to inspect all of Seoul to prevent sinkholes that have recently heightened public anxiety and to disclose the results to citizens.
"Citizens' lives are diverse, but safety must come first as the most fundamental priority," Jeong said during an appearance on MBC Radio's "Kim Jong-bae's Focus" on the 5th. "I will prove the basic value of administration that safely supports citizens' lives through my first official approval."
"Using ground-penetrating radar technology, we can shoot lasers beneath roads and sidewalks to detect all underground cavities," he explained. "By filling small spaces, we can prevent them from growing into sinkholes."
Seongdong District has already completed inspections of underground spaces beneath district roads using this method and filled the voids. Information about the filled spaces was subsequently disclosed to residents. "Seoul City is also conducting inspections, but Seongdong District went as far as public disclosure," Jeong said. "We made public which areas' underground spaces were inspected and which spots were filled."
Regarding the Democratic Party of Korea primary to select the mayoral candidate, he said, "I'm running because I have confidence. Every election is difficult and unpredictable, but I must prepare well day by day."
On Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon of the People Power Party, considered his likely general election opponent, Jeong commented: "He has served as mayor four times over more than 10 years, but there are no notable achievements, and there has been considerable noisy political strife, so citizens are feeling fatigued."
Jeong emphasized "demand-tailored supply," arguing that real estate issues should be approached as overall housing problems rather than simply apartment prices. "It's important to increase supply by accelerating redevelopment and reconstruction," he said. "Additionally, we need housing supply that ordinary young people, newlyweds, and citizens can access—including affordable apartments, rental apartments, and housing in low-rise dense areas."
On resident opposition to housing development at Taereung Golf Course, he said: "In principle, developing any area requires traffic impact assessments and environmental impact assessments, and residents' opinions must be reflected at that time. Since Taereung Golf Course is located in front of a World Heritage site, it requires separate evaluation. Development should proceed only after residents' interests are reflected through such processes."
