President Lee Jae-myung, Democratic Party Chairman Jung Cheong-rae, and Democratic Party Seoul mayoral candidate Jung Won-oh launched a coordinated offensive against People Power Party Seoul mayoral candidate Oh Se-hoon, seizing on the collapse of the Seosomun overpass and the rebar omission scandal at the GTX-A Samseong Station to attack Seoul's safety record. Oh said he felt the weight of responsibility for the accidents but countered by emphasizing the continuity of his existing safety policies, including the expansion of CCTV at construction sites and the installation of screen doors.
At a senior secretaries' meeting at the presidential office on the 28th, President Lee ordered a high-intensity investigation, saying, "The seriousness of these incidents is heightened by the fact that the public sector, which should lead the way in protecting public safety more than anyone, is involved."
Lee also referred to the 10th anniversary of the Guui Station tragedy, pointing out that "in some parts of our society, the bad practice of valuing money and efficiency over safety still persists." He continued, "A thorough investigation is needed to determine whether the Seosomun overpass accident and the Samseong Station GTX rebar problem also stemmed from these ills," and stressed, "Responsibility must be sternly pursued regardless of rank."
The Democratic Party joined in by holding an emergency roundtable at the National Assembly titled "Is Seoul's Safety Really All Right?" hosted by the Public Administration and Security Committee and the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee.
Democratic Party Chairman Jung Cheong-rae criticized the reality of repeated backward-style accidents 30 years after the Seongsu Bridge and Sampoong Department Store collapses, raising his voice to declare, "We must reexamine society's entire safety management system from top to bottom, and those who must take responsibility must clearly take responsibility." Rep. Chun Jun-ho of the Public Administration and Security Committee directly targeted the possibility of administrative negligence, citing suspicions of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's early selection of contractors and its neglect of warning signs.
Democratic Party candidate Jung Won-oh, who is running for Seoul mayor, also raised the level of his offensive against Oh. At a press briefing the same day, Jung pointed to incidents such as the Itaewon tragedy that occurred during Oh's tenure, saying, "Despite many countermeasures being announced, many safety accidents are still occurring."
He pledged that, if elected, he would establish a "Seoul Citizens' Life and Safety Committee" directly under the mayor and triple the safety prevention budget within the disaster management fund, declaring a paradigm shift toward preemptive preventive administration.
However, Jung added that "accidents in which there were victims should not be turned into political fodder," saying he had instructed his party to refrain from excessive election marketing.
In response, Oh said at a press conference at his Jongno-gu campaign office the same day, "As someone who was responsible for Seoul's city administration, I feel a heavy responsibility that cannot be expressed in words."
Oh said, "The reason I completely halted my election campaign immediately after the accident was because I prioritized handling the accident and inspecting the site," adding, "I will stay even more vigilant and persistently examine every gap and blind spot so as not to miss even the smallest danger signal at the site."
Citing measures such as 100 percent CCTV installation at all public construction sites in Seoul and the installation of screen doors at every subway station, he stressed, "The multi-angle recording system at construction sites was a decisive measure to root safety culture in our society."
Oh said, "We are currently expanding CCTV recording even at private redevelopment sites through licensing conditions," adding, "We will legislate this going forward and tighten the atmosphere at construction sites even further."
At the same time, Oh appealed for the rallying of conservative supporters, saying, "If we surrender even Seoul, even the minimum foundation for rebuilding a rational and healthy conservatism will disappear."
