"On the Brink of Death" "I Want to Live in My Own Home"... Words Flood the People Power Party's 'Public Hearing'

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporters Lee Ji-eun, Lim Chun-han] "I'm on the verge of death. There is no hope." (Small Business Owner Representative Kim Hyun-jung)

"If you ask whether I want to live in a rental apartment, that's not it. I want to live in my own apartment." (University Student Representative Ham Dong-su)

At the 'Finding Seoul Citizen Candidates Public Hearing' hosted by the People Power Party's primary preparation committee held at the National Assembly on the 6th, representatives from various sectors including small business owners, university students, office workers, and parents shared their desperate stories.

Kim Hyun-jung, who attended the public hearing as a representative of small business owners, said, "When I first started, I had hope that I could work hard, buy a house, get married, and have a baby, but now there is only despair," adding, "Small business owners are the people who support the bottom of society and the economy, but none of the current policies are practically helpful."

Kim said, "There is a policy in Seoul that supports housing prices when starting a business, but young people cannot afford housing prices and live in offices, and I myself cannot even dream of buying a house in Seoul," adding, "if there are no policies that recognize us (self-employed), understand how hard young people are, listen to and consider the underlying issues young people face, small business owners will perish together."

Ham Dong-su, who appeared as a university student representative, said, "Building rental apartments near subway stations is not a bad idea, but when cheap and good rooms for monthly rent become available, the subscription is like a lottery. I have failed twice myself," adding, "If you ask whether I want to live in a rental apartment, that's not it. I want to live in my own apartment."

Ham also commented on opposition candidates, saying, "When talking with young people, if you ask whether the well-known candidates or the candidates ranked first in polls are the ones we want, they say no," adding, "I hope to create candidates like Governor Lee Jae-myung of Gyeonggi Province, who may have low recognition but are capable and have risen from the bottom."

Song Seo-yul, who represented office workers, said, "Even though there are policies for young people, many young people are unaware of them," and requested, "while supplementing policies for youth, please also implement diverse promotions so that many young people can benefit from these policies."

Song also said, "The ideal Seoul mayor candidate is a morally clean person, a differentiated individual," adding, "Not a coercive or contradictory leader, but a fair person with excellent empathy, a trustworthy person who leads with warm consideration, and a virtuous person who thinks about Seoul's problems from the citizens' perspective and has outstanding communication skills."

Park Hyo-jin, representing parents, said about the ideal Seoul mayor candidate, "I hope the mayor will be someone who talks about new hope and is far from greed," adding, "I hope they create a happy Seoul where our neighbors and children are not used as test subjects, and where children can live without relying on 'mom-chance' or 'dad-chance'."

Park also expressed the difficulties of parenting due to COVID-19, saying, "During the chaos of COVID, who will watch my child, feed them, and what to do after school?each of these is a 'mom-chance,' 'dad-chance,' or 'grandparent-chance,'" adding, "The learning gap between regions and schools has widened due to COVID, and I hope the mayor will be someone who understands the hearts of parents who want to educate their children in better places."

Dr. Jang Kyung-sang of the National Governance Research Institute advised, "The People Power Party should not just find Seoul citizen candidates but should invite Seoul citizen candidates," adding, "It is necessary to make Seoul citizens the main agents rather than the People Power Party."

He said, "Looking at President Moon's administration evaluation, the negative opinion exceeds half in Seoul, but the People Power Party has not fully captured the power of this majority," adding, "It is arrogant to try to hold an election without the help of citizens who oppose the Moon administration, even if they do not support the People Power Party." Dr. Jang also advised to ▲make the entire candidate selection process open to Seoul citizens ▲divide the preliminary and main primaries ▲create a space where candidates and citizens can express their opinions through YouTube.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.