The Gwangju Integrated Special City has faced criticism for completely cutting local funding for the 'Citizen Participation Policy Group' due to the central government's suspension of national funding. This decision may weaken the initial function of gathering resident feedback during the integration process.
On September 15, Lee Jeong-woon, a council member representing Muan 2, questioned the appropriateness of the budget cuts and the transition of the policy group to a non-budgeted project during a review of the supplementary budget by the Administrative Safety Committee.
The Citizen Participation Policy Group is a resident participation system aimed at identifying inconveniences faced by citizens in their daily lives and suggesting policy improvements.
Lee stated, "The Citizen Participation Policy Group is not merely a group that uses public facilities; it plays a crucial role in monitoring citizens' real-life inconveniences and directly reflecting them in policies. At this critical time for discovering various initiatives and gathering resident opinions following the launch of the integrated special city, it is necessary to reconsider the decision to cut related budgets and neglect its operation."
He specifically criticized the administration's response of cutting local funding solely because national funding was halted.
Lee Jeong-woon emphasized, "We need to examine whether it is appropriate to convert projects to non-budgeted status or halt them without securing even a small amount of local funding just because national funding has ceased. If necessary, we should allocate city funds to ensure that the participation group can effectively operate and enhance its functions."
In response, Kim Dong-hyun, the Director of Autonomous Policy, explained that the project is a nationwide initiative led by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and is currently being operated in a non-budgeted form.
Kim stated that the city will comprehensively review the potential for collaboration with similar citizen participation groups, the possibility of functional overlap, and the effectiveness of the project before deciding on its inclusion in next year's main budget.
Lee reiterated the need for a communication channel to convey the diverse opinions of residents from Jeonnam and Gwangju, especially during the early stages of the integrated special city.
He asserted, "To gather various voices from different regions and strengthen communication during the initial integration phase, the role of citizen participation organizations like the Citizen Participation Policy Group must be maintained, and practical operational measures should be established."
Additionally, during the review of the budget and supplementary budget at this regular session, Lee is ensuring that the administrative changes following the launch of the integrated special city do not lead to inconveniences for residents by examining the necessity of projects and their impact on the community.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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