0
AI-generated image posted by Rep. Yoo Sang-bum of the People Power Party on Facebook on the 8th. / Rep. Yoo Sang-bum's Facebook

On the 10th, criticism poured in from across the political spectrum over Democratic Party lawmaker Hwang Hee's proposal to convert decommissioned buses into housing as a solution to the youth housing shortage.

PPP leader Jang Dong-hyuk said at a Supreme Council meeting that day, "Is this really something that should come out of the mouth of a lawmaker who has served as a minister?" Responding to the Democratic Party's request that the remark be treated as a "one-off mishap," Jang said, "Is this the kind of thing you throw at young people who feel they've had to give up on their futures, and just call it a mishap?" calling it a "carnival of nonsense that mocks young people and makes a fool of the public." He added, "Instead of telling young people to live in decommissioned buses, the party should move its own headquarters and lawmakers' offices into decommissioned buses first."

PPP floor leader Jeong Jeom-sik also directly criticized the idea, calling it "not policy, but mockery aimed at young people." He argued that housing and asset-building for young people are basic conditions for marriage and child-rearing, asking how the president has the standing to talk about marriage after undermining those very conditions, and called for a shift in state governance direction and a full overhaul of the presidential office and Cabinet.

PPP chief spokesperson Park Chung-kwon told reporters at the National Assembly press room that what Rep. Hwang needs to do is apologize, not explain himself. He described the "bus house" idea as "an absurd notion that treats young people — Korea's future — like beggars or refugees," demanding that Hwang explain the thinking behind the proposal and formally apologize. PPP Rep. Shin Dong-wook also pointed to the hypocrisy of the idea, asking, "Would he tell his own children to live in a decommissioned bus?"

Reform Party floor leader Cheon Ha-ram said at a Supreme Council meeting, "It's frightening that 'bus houses' could actually become reality," calling it "an unavoidable future being created by the Lee Jae-myung administration."

Criticism also came from within the Democratic Party itself. DP Rep. Park Jie-won said on SBS Radio's "Kim Tae-hyun's Politics Show" that day, "Rep. Hwang is a careful, good person, but he posted an inappropriate example that provoked young people and students." Regarding DP Policy Committee Chair Han Jeong-ae's dismissal of the controversy as a "mishap" the previous day, Park said, "Why call that a mishap? It was a mistake," stressing, "He needs to clearly apologize for the mistake. The floor leader also needs to issue a warning to Rep. Hwang so that people in their 20s and 30s, and the public more broadly, can understand."

Earlier, DP chief spokesperson Kang Jun-hyun had drawn a clear line, saying that what Rep. Hwang proposed was entirely his own personal opinion, unrelated to the party's position. As the controversy grew, Rep. Hwang deleted the post he had made on the 7th and posted an apology on social media that day, saying, "I failed to fully grasp the seriousness of the housing problems young people face on the ground."

                                                                                                             Shim Jun-bo