Sim Chang-wook, Gwangju City Councilor, "Lack of Management and Supervision in City-Commissioned Services Causes Poor Service"

Shim Chang-wook, a member of the Gwangju Metropolitan Council, claimed that the lack of management and supervision by the Haejung Office from the issuance, review, contract execution, to settlement of service contracts commissioned by Gwangju City is causing poor-quality services.

In a policy question session at the 320th extraordinary meeting of the Gwangju Metropolitan Council, Councilor Shim said, "'Service contracts' are the foundational stage of city administration, involving research and investigation into the necessity and feasibility of projects," adding, "If the production of materials, review, contracts, and execution are influenced by certain individuals or hindered by the incompetence of public officials and contractors, it will not only cause administrative and financial losses but also unsettle citizens and become a major obstacle to the development of our city."

He continued, "Regarding the construction of the new Jisan IC, it must have been an unavoidable choice due to complaints from local residents about the risks and inconveniences caused by the reduction of road width. However, it is questionable whether it is reasonable to invest an additional 15 billion KRW to create one new lane and open access roads," and criticized, "The tram installation was also pushed forward but rejected at the service contract review stage, which shows Mayor Kang’s reckless, forceful administration."

He also pointed out issues with private contracts. According to the private contract status for construction, services, and supplies submitted by Gwangju City to Councilor Shim for the past year, the main office had 1,032 cases worth 181.7 billion KRW, branch offices and affiliated institutions had 2,285 cases worth 85.4 billion KRW, and for contracts with one or two persons, the main office had 594 cases worth 15.9 billion KRW, while branch offices and affiliated institutions had 951 cases worth 54.4 billion KRW.

Furthermore, after the conclusion of private contracts, 32 companies?12 construction firms, 2 service providers, and 8 supply companies?were excluded from private contracts due to various contract violations last year and this year.

Among them, Company A was registered as a private contract exclusion target due to its fault after signing a private contract last year, but three months later, it signed another private contract this year and again violated the contract, resulting in being listed again as a private contract exclusion company.

Councilor Shim said, "It is a serious problem that the regulatory measure against these companies is limited to just a three-month exclusion from private contracts," and added, "Such lenient regulation causes a vicious cycle where the same companies violate contracts every year and are repeatedly registered as private contract exclusion companies."

Meanwhile, Mayor Kang Ki-jung stated, "As can be seen from the significant drop in the review approval rate, which was about 95% in the past three years, we will conduct thorough reviews and accurately assess the necessity to make improvements."

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