Seoulscapade

Here is everyone--well, not quite everyone--voting unanimously on 10 issues that need to be resolved before AMCO construction can start.

One small flower and big stupidity created all of the problems and delays we’ve had for the past 3 years.

Imagine the scene in 2003. A community vote is being held to nominate the builder of the Songdo redevelopment. All the people there are residents, whose homes will be demolished and who will gain an new apartment for a small payment of 250,000,000 won ($250,000). Not only that, they will be given money, possibly 100,000,000 won ($100,000), to live on, while they wait for the construction to be completed. Pretty good deal, I’d say.

There they are with a new strut in their step—community leaders are swaggering about, everyone’s puffed up and happy because they’ve hit the jackpot. They are nobodies in a poor neighborhood, not too smart, and mostly elderly, but here they have the power to vote who will build their new expensive homes.

And the choice? Hanjin or LG. It’s a no-brainer. LG is the biggest and the best. It’s a forgone conclusion that LG should be voted because the apartments will be top quality and their resale value will be very high. All residents were going to choose LG. But wait! At the door of the voting place are Hanjin representatives with a rose for each person. It worked.

The elderly community, largely poor, largely uneducated and unintelligent were swayed by Hanjin’s flower. They changed their minds and voted Hanjin. Fucking morons. Had they voted LG that day, we would be now living in a rather expensive apartment and looking quite well off.

The old residents voice their opinions. This is when things had calmed down a little and people had dispersed but trouble still flared up now and then.

Since that day of the Hanjin vote, all the problems started. The community leader handed over his official stamp to the community manager, who then proceeded to stamp everything. Another builder, Daemyung, got involved. No records were kept of where money went. Illegal activities were done. Now an accounting firm has to be hired to track down what happened and where money went.

After years of problems because of these clueless pea-brained residents, we are at some final voting on Saturday, July 4, and they all walk out! This is not before they demanded a special contract different to everyone else, where they didn’t have to pay a cent more. That would mean everyone else would have to pay for them.

Morons on the move. These are the last people at the meeting that should have any reason to show indignation.

During the explanation of voting, the old fogies were standing up demanding to be heard. They were running up the front and shouting. The audience was shouting them down. It was clear there were two factions there. The elderly idiot residents and the younger later purchasers like us. Finally, a wall of people was put across the stage to prevent violence. Then a debate ensued, the culmination of which the old residents walked out.

Residents stop to voice objections and shout abuse.

While it was all happening, the conniving old fool, the community leader was sitting like a snake behind a rock, watching intently. Finally he got up and said he would go with the other residence and they all walked out the door.

Another debate followed to decide whether the vote should go ahead. Everyone wanted to do it, even without the old fogies.

All of this took 5 hours to resolve. I was sitting their shaking my head at the stupidity and greed of the old resident’s demands. They should giving us money for all the trouble they have caused. My wife was full of hatred for the old community leader. He has been at the center of all the feeble minded stupidity that has cost us time, money and frustration.