It has been three days since the Itaewon disaster, but police and administrative agencies are delaying their responsibility by issuing a formal apology.
Minister of Public Administration said, "As a minister responsible for the safety of the people, I sincerely apologize. "I'm sorry that I couldn't understand the feelings of the bereaved family and the people."
Critics say that Minister's position is not a reflection but an explanation to avoid criticism. Immediately after the disaster, problems such as the Ministry of Public Administration and Security's absence of a crowd response manual were revealed, and when the minister in charge of the ministry remarks on the effect that he did as much as possible, he turned to "unconditional apology."
The same goes for Park Hee-young, the head of Yongsan-gu, who has jurisdiction over the disaster. Mayor Park issued a press release on the same day, saying, "As the head of the district office, I am very sorry to the people and the people of Yongsan-gu for the terrible accident that occurred in the district office." After the disaster, Mayor Park said, "Since there was no organization, it was not a festival, but a phenomenon that played the role of the district office." Mayor Park also started to deal with the situation one step later because of the criticism.
Public criticism has been narrowed down to the sloppy response of the police and administrative authorities, and the apology has belatedly begun to be baton-touched. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who had been silent until this day, said in a statement at the Seoul Metropolitan Government Office, "As the mayor of Seoul who is responsible for the lives and safety of citizens, I feel infinite responsibility and deeply apologize." Police Commissioner Yoon Hee-geun also held a briefing for the Commissioner of the National Police Agency regarding the Itaewon accident at the National Police Agency on the same day, saying, "The on-site response to the 112 report was insufficient. "I keenly feel the limitless responsibility." He then set up an independent special organization at the National Police Agency to supplement the problems of field response. According to the recordings received at 112 just before the Itaewon disaster, citizens reported that they were worried about not being able to control the crowd and that an accident was likely to occur due to a flood of people, but the police did not control it. Until just one day ago, the police had a battle with the Seoul Transportation Corporation over "no subway stops."
The police claimed that they had requested the transit of Itaewon Station without stopping before the accident, and the corporation continued the exhausting controversy with the intention that the request came after the disaster.
The Ministry of Public Administration and Security, the National Police Agency and the Fire Department reported urgent issues related to the Itaewon disaster at the plenary session of the National Assembly's Administration and Security Committee. In response, Rep. Yong Hae-in of the Basic Income Party said, "No one from the head of Yongsan-gu District Office to the head of the National Police Agency, the head of the Public Administration and Security Administration, or the president is sorry. There are only those who try to avoid responsibility."
The police have formed an investigation headquarters and are concentrating on identifying the cause of the disaster, but many say that the investigation into the responsibility of the superiors should proceed at the same speed. The civic group "Citizens' Action to Correct Justice" held a press conference in front of the Gwacheon Government Complex and reported Lee, Yoon, and Oh Se-hoon, the mayor of Seoul, to the high-ranking official crime investigation office. Sase Bank said, "There was a risk of a large crowd before the disaster, but the police and administrative agencies did not take any precautions against safety accidents. The defendants should intentionally give up their duties such as disaster and safety management."
Writer: Soyun Lee
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