Why Was the 'Mapo 1beonga' Resident Proposal Submission Booth Removed?

Despite the Election Commission's Response That It Is 'Permissible Under the Public Official Election Act,' Demolition Proceeded in Mapo-gu

Current Appearance After Mapo 1st Street Withdrawal

Mapo 1st Street before withdrawal

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Mapo-gu (Mayor Yoo Dong-gyun) announced on the 30th that it will dismantle the promotional banners for the policy communication platform ‘Mapo 1st Street’ and the citizen proposal submission box ‘Blue Mailbox’ managed during the 7th local government administration.

The ‘Mapo 1st Street’ policy proposal submission window, a flagship pledge project of the 7th local government administration of Mapo-gu, has been installed and operated at 25 locations including 16 neighborhood community centers, the district office, and health centers since July 2018. However, recently, controversy arose over violations of election laws because the ‘Mapo 1st Street’ promotional banners were said to evoke the symbolic colors and signs of a specific political party.

On the 23rd, the district received a report from a civil complaint visitor at a Mapo-gu neighborhood community center stating that ‘a banner reminiscent of a specific political party is installed.’ On the 24th, the Seoul Metropolitan Election Commission responded that ‘the facility was installed as a window to collect policy proposals, so it is permissible under the Public Official Election Act.’

Nevertheless, to prevent unnecessary misunderstandings among citizens in advance, the district decided to dismantle the ‘Mapo 1st Street’ promotional banners and the citizen proposal submission window.

‘Mapo 1st Street,’ an online and offline communication system that unravels the complex district administration through residents’ ideas and participation, has received a total of 1,669 proposals through its policy communication window since July 2018.

Among them, 134 proposals were adopted, and 82 were recognized for creativity and effectiveness and realized in district administration.

Representative projects where citizens’ ideas were realized as actual district policies include ▲the nation’s first free installation of fire extinguishers in vehicles for the disabled ▲CPR training for village bus drivers ▲bus stop windbreak shelters to block the biting winter wind ▲installation of logojekts to prevent illegal dumping of garbage.

In this way, ‘Mapo 1st Street’ has been highly evaluated for its interactive communication that reflects residents’ opinions to solve local problems. It won the highest award, the ‘Grand Prize (Minister of the Interior and Safety Award),’ at the ‘3rd Korea Local Autonomy Policy Awards’ hosted by Media A in 2018 and sponsored by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, establishing itself as a representative project of the district.

Going forward, the district plans to seek new alternatives to replace the on-site policy proposal submission windows of ‘Mapo 1st Street,’ such as online submission windows, and continue to promote citizens’ participation and communication in district administration.

Mayor Yoo Dong-gyun of Mapo-gu said, “Mapo 1st Street was a core axis of district administration leading ‘communication and innovation’ during the 7th local government administration as an online and offline communication platform with citizens. Although it is regrettable that Mapo 1st Street has been embroiled in controversy over election law violations, I made this decision because I believe it is important to dispel misunderstandings ahead of the election.”

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