President Yoon's First Month in Office... Opening of the Yongsan Era and the 'Commuting President' Change

Presidential Office: "Returning Cheongwadae to the People... Fulfilling the Promise of 'Not Hiding Behind Advisors'"

President Yoon Seok-yeol, who marks one month in office on the 10th, is answering questions from reporters as he arrives at the Yongsan Presidential Office building on the morning of the 9th. 2022.6.9 [Photo by Presidential Office Press Photographers] [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Kyung-jun] The Presidential Office selected the ‘New 10 Changes’ created by President Yoon Suk-yeol, who marks one month in office on the 10th.

On the 9th, the Presidential Office cited ▲ the opening of the Yongsan era ▲ the president’s regular doorstepping (informal Q&A) upon arrival at work ▲ communication activities during lunch hours and weekends ▲ the presidential office open to citizens ▲ the front yard of the office transformed into a citizen plaza ▲ frequent communication between the president and secretaries ▲ unification efforts ▲ passage of supplementary budget ▲ visits to the press room ▲ and the Korea-US summit.

The Presidential Office stated, "For the first time in 74 years since the establishment of the government, the Blue House was returned to the people, and the president began working at the Yongsan Presidential Office upon inauguration," adding, "Despite practical constraints and security concerns, we broke away from the Blue House, a symbol of the imperial presidency."

The office also highlighted that doorstepping was conducted a total of 12 times. It evaluated, "Through a communication method and frequency incomparable to previous presidents, the promise of ‘not hiding behind aides’ was fulfilled."

Additionally, the Presidential Office mentioned examples such as President Yoon purchasing shoes at a department store on weekends and having lunch near the office, emphasizing his communication efforts as "the first president to leave the enclosed space of the Blue House and live in the same space as citizens."

The utilization of the office space was also noted as a key scene. The Presidential Office said, "We invited the Speaker of the National Assembly, ‘20 Representatives of National Hope,’ war heroes and their families from the Cheonan sinking, the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong, the Yeonpyeong Island shelling, and the DMZ landmine incident to the office," explaining, "The office was used as a space to meet citizens directly."

It added, "With the office and secretaries’ offices located in the same building, frequent communication maximized work efficiency."

Moreover, a small and medium-sized business conference was held on the lawn in front of the office building, and a resident invitation event is planned on the 19th to commemorate the completion of remodeling work at the Yongsan Presidential Office building.

The Presidential Office also cited unification efforts such as attending the 42nd anniversary ceremony of the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement with ruling party figures, the execution of a supplementary budget worth 62 trillion won for ‘COVID-19 loss compensation,’ and the Korea-US summit held just 11 days after the new government’s launch as representative achievements.

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