Yoon "Kim Byung-joon Appointed as Chair of Regional Balanced Development Committee... Expecting a Big Picture"

Serving as Standing Election Committee Chair to Assist Candidate Yoon During Election Process

Kim Byung-joon, former standing co-chairman of the People Power Party, is giving a greeting speech at an event where the youth generation declared their support for presidential candidate Yoon Seok-yeol, held at the People Power Party Daegu City Office on the afternoon of February 10. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Geum Bo-ryeong] Professor Kim Byung-joon of Kookmin University was appointed on the 14th as the Chair of the Regional Balanced Development Committee under the Presidential Transition Committee of President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol.

On the morning of the 14th, before a private meeting with Ahn Cheol-soo, Chair of the Transition Committee, at his office in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, President-elect Yoon stated in his opening remarks, "I asked former New Politics Alliance for Democracy leader Kim Han-gil to serve as Chair of the National Integration Committee, and Professor Kim Byung-joon of Kookmin University to take charge of the Special Committee on Regional Balanced Development, and they have agreed."

President-elect Yoon emphasized about Professor Kim, "Based on his long experience and expertise in local autonomy and decentralization, I expect him to draw a big picture for regional balanced development in the new government."

Professor Kim is known as a 'Pro-Roh' (supporter of former President Roh Moo-hyun). During the Roh Moo-hyun administration, he served as the Blue House Policy Chief and Presidential Policy Advisor, leading major national agendas such as real estate policy and the new administrative capital policy. It is also said that a significant portion of the participatory government's policies passed through his hands. He also worked closely with President Moon Jae-in during the Roh Moo-hyun administration at the Blue House.

After the Roh Moo-hyun administration, he distanced himself from public office but was nominated as Prime Minister candidate during the Park Geun-hye government amid the political scandal. From that point, Professor Kim began to take a conservative path. However, after former President Park Geun-hye was impeached and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn became acting president, he stepped down from the 'Prime Minister nominee' position.

In 2018, he also served as the Emergency Response Committee Chair of the Liberty Korea Party (predecessor of the People Power Party), which suffered a crushing defeat in local elections. During his term, he announced the economic discourse 'i-Nomics,' which concretized the ideology of 'de-statization' into policy. The main contents included the introduction of a total regulatory cost system and a negative regulation system.

In the April 2020 general election, he ran in the Sejong constituency, claiming to be the 'designer of Sejong City,' but was defeated.

Although he had no personal ties with President-elect Yoon, it is known that they built a strong trust relationship as Yoon sought political and policy advice from him over time.

Professor Kim also supported President-elect Yoon during the election process. He joined as a standing co-chair of the People Power Party's election campaign committee.

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