Kim In-ho, Chairman of Seoul Metropolitan Council, "Top Priority This Year: Complete Quarantine and Economic Recovery"

Chairman Kim of the Assembly stated in the '2021 New Year's Address' that "The Seoul Metropolitan Council will achieve complete quarantine as soon as possible and write a true history of recovery. Together with the citizens of Seoul, we will create another miracle of overcoming."

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Kim In-ho, Chairperson of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, stated, "The top priority for the Seoul Metropolitan Council this year is complete quarantine."

In his 2021 New Year's address, Chairperson Kim said, "We will join forces with the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education to make extensive policy efforts so that COVID-19, which threatened the safety and lives of citizens and caused great damage across all sectors of society last year, can no longer disrupt our daily lives."

He also said, "I believe that complete quarantine begins with thorough patient management. We will significantly expand diagnostic testing such as proactive testing and support flawless epidemiological investigations."

"We will explore securing public medical spaces from multiple angles and support the discovery of new personnel to replace exhausted medical staff and volunteers. We will not hesitate to take strict measures against places that violate government guidelines and become sources of large-scale group infections. Along with this, we will strengthen the social safety net through meticulous care and lead efforts to close gaps through emergency support for small business owners," he added. "The Seoul Metropolitan Council will provide legislative and financial backing more swiftly than ever to ensure that all these measures proceed smoothly and on time."

Chairperson Kim emphasized, "If citizens take the lead in successfully containing the virus, the next step will be economic recovery."

"Our economy is facing severe difficulties. The situation is so grave that it can be called an emergency economic crisis. The damage to major industries such as aviation, hotels, and tourism is beyond words. The reality for small business owners and self-employed individuals is even harsher. The chill of the frozen job market is directly passed on to the youth and elderly, and vulnerable groups who live day-to-day are facing a livelihood crisis," he said.

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New Year's Address

Dear ten million citizens, I am Kim In-ho, Chairperson of the Seoul Metropolitan Council.

The year 2021, the Year of the Ox (辛丑年), has dawned amid the COVID-19 crisis. Despite great difficulties, I extend my gratitude and encouragement to the ten million citizens who are doing their best to maintain their daily lives in their respective places.

Our common New Year's goal is to eradicate infectious diseases. Unfortunately, Seoul has faced its most dangerous period since the outbreak of COVID-19, and community infections that have penetrated daily life are spreading at a frightening speed. Reflecting on the restraint and patience shown by citizens over the past year, and the even greater dedication and sacrifice that lie ahead, I cannot hide my sorrow.

Therefore, the top priority for the Seoul Metropolitan Council this year is complete quarantine.

We will join forces with the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education to make extensive policy efforts so that COVID-19, which threatened the safety and lives of citizens and caused great damage across all sectors of society last year, can no longer disrupt our daily lives.

I believe that complete quarantine begins with thorough patient management. We will significantly expand diagnostic testing such as proactive testing and support flawless epidemiological investigations. We will explore securing public medical spaces from multiple angles and support the discovery of new personnel to replace exhausted medical staff and volunteers. We will not hesitate to take strict measures against places that violate government guidelines and become sources of large-scale group infections. Along with this, we will strengthen the social safety net through meticulous care and lead efforts to close gaps through emergency support for small business owners. The Seoul Metropolitan Council will provide legislative and financial backing more swiftly than ever to ensure that all these measures proceed smoothly and on time.

In fact, the Seoul Metropolitan Council increased the budget by more than 100 billion won beyond the initial budget proposal submitted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, ultimately passing a budget of 40.1562 trillion won. This includes large allocations for stockpiling quarantine supplies to end COVID-19, disinfecting public transportation and welfare facilities, supporting vaccine development, covering free vaccination costs, and stabilizing livelihoods. The Seoul Metropolitan Council will diligently monitor and check to ensure that all budgets are executed as planned.

Citizen efforts are also crucial for the success of complete quarantine. We must remember the intense dedication and sacrifice made across all sectors and never neglect the quarantine responsibilities assigned to individuals. I ask you to remember the pain of essential medical staff and volunteers who have tirelessly guarded the frontlines for months, public officials who have forgotten to go home due to quarantine enforcement and epidemiological tracking, welfare workers who continue home visits to minimize care gaps for vulnerable groups, and all others working hard for the community. Please practice restraint once again with the mature civic consciousness admired worldwide.

If citizens take the lead in successfully containing the virus, the next step will be economic recovery.

Our economy is facing severe difficulties. The situation is so grave that it can be called an emergency economic crisis. The damage to major industries such as aviation, hotels, and tourism is beyond words. The reality for small business owners and self-employed individuals is even harsher. The chill of the frozen job market is directly passed on to the youth and elderly, and vulnerable groups who live day-to-day are facing a livelihood crisis.

However, even here, we are creating hope. Companies are rapidly transforming to adapt to the swift shift to the non-face-to-face online market. As the industrial structure reorganizes to keep pace with market changes and digital-centered new businesses grow, digital re-education for citizens is also being carried out in various ways.

The same applies to eco-friendly industries. The infectious disease crisis has reminded humanity of the correlation between the global environment and health. Beyond the awareness that environmental resources must be conserved and respected, a new argument has gained strength that environmental protection itself should be the goal and that eco-friendly industries should become the core of future growth engines.

As the capital of the Republic of Korea, Seoul has long played a leading role in pioneering new national policies. Seoul has often taken the initiative in areas where the national government hesitates and spread the results nationwide. The paths of the Digital New Deal and Green New Deal are no different. Seoul's continuous policy experiments in AI technology development, bio-industry expansion, greenhouse gas reduction, and renewable energy expansion will produce good results and rapidly spread, leading to societal transformation. New business sectors will provide new jobs and sources of income, forming the foundation for a sustainable society for a long time.

In fact, this year's budget includes funds for economic recovery and future growth. Seoul plans to spare no support for job creation and the operation of R&D innovation organizations. The firm determination to efficiently allocate limited budgets between quarantine and economic recovery and not neglect timely investment for the future is evident. The Seoul Metropolitan Council will oversee these efforts to ensure they bear tangible fruit.

And together with you, we will once again create a miracle of overcoming.

Whenever the nation has faced critical moments, we have overcome adversity with united strength. Instead of giving up in the face of crisis, we have risen and found ways to prevail. The voluntary restraint and sharing efforts shown by citizens over the past year seemed to reenact the history of unity and overcoming that we have built over hundreds and thousands of years.

We now stand at a new starting line. This is not just the start of a new calendar year. It is a starting line to turn despair into hope, wounds into recovery, and crisis into growth. The Seoul Metropolitan Council will achieve complete quarantine as soon as possible and write a true history of recovery. Together with Seoul citizens, we will create another miracle of overcoming.

I sincerely wish that the blessings of the new year be with you all, and I pray for everyone's health and safety. Thank you.

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