Kim In-ho, Seoul City Council Speaker, Urges Mayor Oh Se-hoon to Show Respect for Council Procedures and Cooperation

September 10th 4th Plenary Session Concludes After Handling 137 Proposals... "Seoul City and Seoul Metropolitan Council Must Unite for More Thorough Quarantine Ahead of Chuseok Holiday"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] The Seoul Metropolitan Council (Chairman Kim In-ho) held the 4th plenary session of the 302nd extraordinary meeting on the 10th and plans to process 137 agenda items.

Since the opening of the 302nd extraordinary meeting, the Seoul Metropolitan Council has processed a total of 10 agenda items from August 27 to September 9, including the ‘2nd Supplementary Budget Proposal’ aimed at stabilizing the livelihoods of citizens struggling due to the 4th wave of COVID-19 and strengthening the social safety net.

At the 4th plenary session scheduled for the 10th, 137 agenda items will be processed. Major agenda items include the complete revision of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Basic Ordinance on Support for Single-Person Households to enhance the effectiveness of support for single-person households and realize Seoul as a social family city; the Seoul Metropolitan Government Ordinance on the Prevention of Digital Sexual Crimes and Support for Victims, which establishes legal grounds to protect citizens safely from digital sexual crimes; the partial amendment of the Seoul Metropolitan Government Ordinance on the Use and Management of Gwanghwamun Square, which reorganizes the legislative system regarding the management of Gwanghwamun Square; and the partial amendment of the Seoul Metropolitan Government Ordinance on Seoul-type Paid Sick Leave Support, which provides grounds for eligible persons to use Seoul-type paid sick leave when receiving outpatient treatment or examinations due to adverse reactions after COVID-19 vaccination.

Chairman Kim In-ho stated, “To overcome the difficulties of COVID-19, legislative and financial support is required more swiftly than ever,” adding, “The Seoul Metropolitan Council prioritized supporting livelihoods on the brink of collapse and focused on passing the 2nd supplementary budget for COVID-19 coexistence national support funds, expanding the scope of livelihood benefit recipients, and providing jobs, as well as reviewing other agenda items.”

Chairman Kim also pointed out, “The pandemic does not pause or bypass even during holidays. This is why Seoul City and the Seoul Metropolitan Council must unite for more thorough quarantine measures ahead of Chuseok,” but criticized, “However, it is quite doubtful whether Seoul City truly prioritizes livelihoods and whether it has the will to coexist and cooperate with the Seoul Metropolitan Council.”

Regarding Mayor Oh Se-hoon’s sudden exit during the 3rd plenary session’s administrative inquiry on the 3rd, Chairman Kim In-ho said, “At a time when stable and balanced administration is needed more than ever, Mayor Oh Se-hoon betrayed the expectations and demands of 10 million citizens with rude and abrupt behavior.”

According to Article 50 of the Basic Ordinance of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, during the plenary session, a period is set to allow administrative inquiries targeting the overall administration or specific fields. Council members who wish to ask questions may inquire about anything related to administration and request answers from anyone, with both the content of questions and designation of respondents being the exclusive rights of the questioning member.

Article 52 of the same ordinance requires the mayor to obtain prior permission from the chairman to speak at the plenary session.

However, during the administrative inquiry on the 3rd, Mayor Oh came to the respondent’s seat without being requested to answer, insisted on speaking immediately ignoring the rule that prior permission is required, and despite explanations that he would be given a chance to speak soon, caused chaos in the meeting room and then left the meeting room without permission, forgetting his duty to attend the plenary session as required by Article 49 of the same ordinance.

In response, Chairman Kim In-ho strongly criticized, “Seoul is a mega city colored with the diversity of 10 million people. I believe the role of the leader is to respect this diversity and reduce gaps and disparities solely through laws and policies. However, the leader ignored the most fundamental procedures of parliamentary democracy. The person who enforces the law violated the law in the place where laws are made.”

Finally, Chairman Kim emphasized, “The reason for the existence of local councils is to act as the eyes, ears, and voice of citizens to ensure proper administration, and the core of this is monitoring and checks and balances,” and urged, “Mayor, please respect council procedures and show cooperation so that our council can fulfill the responsibilities entrusted to it.”

The next session of the Seoul Metropolitan Council is the regular session scheduled two months later. It is planned to handle current issues including administrative audits over 52 days from November 1 to December 22, 2021.

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