Park Wansu, Gyeongnam Governor Candidate, "Enriching and Securing Residents' Lives, Leaving No Gaps in Welfare"

Announcement of Practical Pledges by 8 Major Sectors

Candidate Park Wan-su of the People Power Party for Governor of Gyeongnam Province announcing pledges on the 16th. / Photo by Ryeong Lee

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Seryeong] Park Wansu, the People Power Party candidate for Governor of Gyeongnam Province, held a press conference to announce his pledges at the Gyeongnam Provincial Government Press Center on the 16th.

On that day, Candidate Park announced practical tasks in eight areas: ▲Jobs and Economy ▲Safety and Medical Care ▲Welfare ▲Culture and Tourism ▲Infrastructure ▲Climate and Environment ▲Birth and Childcare ▲Agriculture and Fishing Villages.

He explained, “These pledges focus on the prosperous life and safe living of residents, seamless welfare, and the recovery of the local economy to support these.”

He emphasized that the top priority task to be solved is economic recovery and job creation.

“According to the 2020 nationwide per capita personal income results announced by Statistics Korea, among the 18 metropolitan cities and provinces, Gyeongnam ranked 18th, the lowest,” he said. “We must innovate our main industries to create high added value, attract investment from external companies, and foster customized new industries in preparation for the 4th Industrial Revolution.”

As related measures, he cited ▲Establishment of the Gyeongnam Investment Agency ▲Fostering seven strategic Gyeongnam-type technologies such as hydrogen, automobiles, robots, artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things, metaverse, and next-generation small nuclear reactors ▲Creation of clusters for nuclear power and defense industry SMEs.

He pledged to establish a startup academy to nurture young CEOs and support IT, software, AI, metaverse, content, culture, and service industries.

Regarding safety and medical care, he proposed building a comprehensive emergency medical control tower system.

“In the past three years alone, 1,185 cases occurred in Gyeongnam where emergency patients were re-transferred because they could not find a hospital for emergency treatment in time,” he said. “We will create a system linking the 119 Emergency Situation Management Center, the Fire Headquarters, medical institutions, and autonomous police.”

He also pledged to establish public medical centers, attract specialized pediatric emergency medical centers, and negotiate with the government on establishing medical schools.

“There is a relative lack of public medical facilities in western Gyeongnam, so expanding the establishment of medical centers is an urgent task,” he said. “Currently, work is underway to establish a public medical center in Jinju, and we will expedite its operation. In Gimhae, where the population has increased but various medical and welfare services are weak, we will review those areas.”

For welfare policies, he mentioned ▲Expanding implant surgery cost support from those aged 65 and older to those aged 60 and older ▲Expanding park golf courses and improving systems ▲Strengthening operational support for senior leisure facilities such as village halls and senior centers.

He promised to strengthen cooperation systems with private companies to promote employment of the disabled and expand sports facilities exclusively for the disabled.

“We will review whether welfare budget expenditures are being properly made,” he said, showing his willingness to restructure expenditures if necessary to implement policies in a timely manner.

Candidate Park pledged to develop at least one place on the South Coast into a world-class tourist complex like Singapore’s Sentosa and to connect the South Coast to the world by hosting marine expos and more, aiming to revitalize the South Coast tourism service industry.

“To guarantee residents’ mobility rights, activate industrial logistics, and attract tourists, we will build a metropolitan transportation network to make Gyeongnam a one-hour living zone,” he added.

He announced plans to ▲Extend the Daejeon-Tongyeong Expressway to Geoje ▲Open the Southern Inland Railroad early ▲Build an Island Highway connecting the islands of the South Coast to establish a U-shaped transportation network.

“The Southern Inland Railroad, scheduled for completion in 2027, will be a revolutionary turning point for the development of western Gyeongnam,” he said. “We will proceed as originally planned but ensure it is not delayed and strive to advance the schedule as much as possible.”

He also emphasized establishing a new Suseo-origin high-speed rail line on the Gyeongjeon Line and ensuring that the Dongdaegu-Changwon-Gadeokdo New Airport high-speed rail project, included in the policy tasks for Gyeongnam proposed by the Presidential Transition Committee, is reflected in the 5th National Railroad Network Construction Plan.

For climate and environment pledges, he proposed ▲Strengthening the existing Gyeongnam-type ESG consulting project for sustainable development ▲Including environmental awareness indicators and other evaluation factors when selecting private contractors for public contracts ▲Enhancing support for purchasing eco-friendly vehicles such as electric cars ▲Promoting replacement projects for aging water pipes.

“Solar power generation that damages the environment is undesirable,” he stated. “It is right for public institutions to take the lead in installing solar power facilities as a climate change measure, so we will consult with public institutions on this.”

He also presented childcare and low birthrate-related pledges such as ▲Supporting 10-20% of the personal burden for child care services ▲Establishing regional public postpartum care centers and supporting postpartum care costs ▲Supporting fruit snack costs at daycare centers ▲Expanding and improving facilities of regional toy libraries.

“I believe that low birthrate policies show gradual effects when they are sustainable and predictable over 10 to 20 years,” he said. “To ensure stable implementation of low birthrate projects, we will establish a special account for responding to population decline.”

Regarding agriculture and fishing village policies, he declared, “To revitalize rural areas facing the crisis of population extinction, we will organize a 365-day rural labor support team and expand direct payment support for farmers and fishermen.”

He also expressed his intention to create a Gyeongnam-specialized agricultural food export processing cluster and increase smart farm households to secure farm income.

Regarding the national project of the Jinhae New Port, he said he would maximize the ripple effect of Jinhae New Port through a policy alliance uniting Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam.

“We will create a hinterland city or complex for the logistics complex near Jinhae New Port and bring the Gyeongnam Triport,” he added. “We also plan to develop exhibition and convention industries near Jinhae New Port and Gadeokdo New Port.”

After finishing the pledge announcement, Candidate Park Wansu expressed confidence, saying, “Together with the newly launched Yoon Seok-yeol government, I will breathe in sync and draw maximum support from the central government for Gyeongnam’s development to restore the glory of Gyeongnam, which led Korea’s industrialization and democratization.”

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