South Korea’s
president-elect Yoon Suk Yeol said Sunday he will abandon the current
mountainside presidential palace of Blue House and establish his office in
central Seoul as part of efforts to better communicate with the public.

Also Read: Switzerland ready to pay for defending democracy in Russia-Ukraine war

Relocating the
presidential office was one of President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol’s main campaign
promises. The conservative former top prosecutor, whose single five-year term
begins on May 10, said the location and design of the Blue House have fed
criticisms that South Korean presidents are cut off from the public and wield
excessive power.

At the Blue
House, offices for presidential advisers and other officials, as well as the
press room, are not in the same building where the president works.

Also Read: Did PM Boris Johnson meet Russian donor on eve of Ukraine invasion?

At a televised
news conference Sunday, Yoon said he will move the presidential office to the
Defense Ministry compound in central Seoul and that he’ll begin his term there.
He said Defense Ministry officials would be moved to the Joint Chiefs of Staff
building at the compound and that JCS staff would be moved in phases to a war
command centre near Seoul.

Yoon said a
massive public park will be established near the new presidential office and
those ordinary citizens will be able to look at his office from there at a
close distance. He said he plans to establish a press centre at the new
presidential office and meet journalists there frequently.

Also Read: COVID toe, early COVID’s ugly side-effect, may finally have an explanation

According to
Yoon’s plans, the current Blue House will be open to the public as a park on
his inauguration day. He said he’ll collect public opinions to determine the
name of the new presidential office.

Critics of Yoon’s
plan have called on him not to rush the relocation, saying other tasks require
more urgent attention, such as surging COVID-19 cases, the North Korean nuclear
threat and diverse economic woes. They also say the relocation could
inconvenience the public and require excessive spending.

Also Read: US father desperate to get 2-year-old son back home from Ukraine amid war

Outgoing liberal
President Moon Jae-in had earlier also promised to move out of the Blue House
but cancelled the plans after failing to find a site for the new office.

Yoon said he was
aware of concerns about the relocation, but said if he starts his term at the
Blue House, which critics have called “a symbol of imperial power,” it
will become harder to move out of it.

Also Read: Watch: Off-duty cop in Wisconsin kneels on schoolgirl’s neck to stop fight

“I know
relocating the presidential office isn’t an easy thing. But if I back down on a
promise with the people (on the relocation) again, no other future president
would attempt to do it,” Yoon said. “I’ve made this decision for the
future of the country.”

Yoon said the
relocation would cost about 50 billion won ($41 million). Some critics earlier
said it would cost up to 1 trillion won ($825 million).