Choi Ho-kwon, Yeongdeungpo District Mayor, Appeals Directly to Residents Over 23% Cut in Supplementary Budget

Livelihood Budget Cut, Failing to Keep Promises to Residents... Sincere Apology from the District Mayor

Expressing Deep Regret for Not Being Able to Secure Livelihood Budget Formulated Through On-Site Visits and Efforts

District Council Cuts Supplementary Budget by 23%, Disrupting Yeongdeungpo’s Future Preparation and Senior Citizens’ Retirement Plans

District Mayor Choi Ho-kwon: "We Will Actively Reflect Valuable Opinions Discussed in the Meetings and Do Our Best to Prepare for Yeongdeungpo’s Future"

Choi Ho-gwon, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo District Office, is giving a greeting speech at the meeting with the Patriotic Veterans Organizations.

Choi Ho-kwon, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo District, held a series of meetings with residents over the past week.

These meetings were organized to express apologies for not being able to secure the essential livelihood budget amid the unprecedented 23.1% cut in the supplementary budget proposed by the District Council, and to listen to the voices of related organizations and residents.

To revitalize the local economy and actively respond to social issues such as low birth rates and aging population, the district prepared a supplementary budget of 160.9 billion KRW in June and submitted it to the Yeongdeungpo District Council.

The Yeongdeungpo District Council reviewed the supplementary budget from June 23 to June 27 in the Budget and Settlement Special Committee and cut approximately 23.1%, equivalent to 37.2 billion KRW, from the proposed 160.9 billion KRW.

This adjustment scale is about 50 times higher than the average adjustment rate of 0.49% in the last five supplementary budgets.

In particular, the budget was formulated based on ‘boots-on-the-ground administration’ by visiting sites and holding meetings to hear residents’ opinions, rather than desk-based planning. It included 726 million KRW for improving poor senior centers and funeral support for veterans, 76 million KRW for cultural arts and sports to enhance residents’ cultural enjoyment and vitality post-COVID-19, and 140 million KRW to support deficit-ridden village bus companies serving residents.

During the supplementary budget review, the District Council personally visited all 170 senior centers in the area and identified blind spots, but labeled the budget as ‘populist spending.’ Projects for which budget proposals and explanations were submitted one week before the regular session and explained prior to review were criticized for ‘lack of prior explanation.’ Among six budget proposals submitted simultaneously with ordinances, only one submitted by the Council Secretariat was approved, while five related to the district office were fully cut citing “procedural defects.”

The district expressed deep regret, stating, “We find it difficult to agree with the reasons for the cuts, and the supplementary budget cuts have caused setbacks in preparing for Yeongdeungpo’s future and plans for a prosperous retirement for senior citizens.”

Starting on July 10, the district held meetings consecutively with about 140 senior citizens at the 2nd-floor auditorium of the Korea Racing Authority Yeongdeungpo Branch, followed by meetings with stakeholders in culture and arts, transportation, patriotic veterans’ organizations, and sports.

Mayor Choi Ho-kwon explained, “After visiting all 170 senior centers on foot, I realized that each center has different circumstances. We tried to reflect residents’ wishes by formulating a customized budget based on on-site visits and meetings, but ultimately failed to keep our promises, so I wanted to convey this urgent feeling through these meetings.”

A representative from the Korean Senior Citizens Association Yeongdeungpo Branch said, “Many senior centers are in poor condition, and the district mayor personally visited all of them asking what was needed and what improvements would be good. He promised to reflect the seniors’ requests, but the district council cut almost all of it,” expressing deep regret.

One village bus company struggling financially in the area urged, “Please make sure the budget is reflected in the future so that the village buses serving residents do not stop running.”

Meeting with Elderly Residents of Yeongdeungpo-gu

A representative from the Yeongdeungpo Artists’ Federation stated, “As the only legally designated cultural city in Seoul, it is urgent to enhance Yeongdeungpo’s cultural status and hold cultural and artistic events that local residents and senior citizens can enjoy together. For that, budget allocation to activate cultural project operations and support is urgently needed.”

A representative from the local veterans’ organization, the Yeongdeungpo Branch of the Agent Orange Veterans Association, expressed regret over the full cut of the funeral support budget, saying, “The district mayor prepared this budget to honor the noble dedication and sacrifice of national veterans and to provide proper respect for their final journey.”

Mayor Choi Ho-kwon said, “We will actively reflect the issues discussed in the meetings and strive to realize the residents’ wishes as much as possible. Although this supplementary budget was regrettably cut, as always, we will maintain close communication with residents to take care of the livelihood economy and do our best to prepare for Yeongdeungpo’s future.”

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