Yoon: "The New Year is the Year of Livelihood Recovery... Policies Must Be Fully Accountable" (Comprehensive)

Presiding Over the First Cabinet Meeting of the New Year... Emphasizing an "Active Government"
"Good Policies Are Useless If Unknown"
Mentions Chungju City's YouTube 'ChungTV' as "Needed Innovation"
Expanding Livelihood Benefit Recipients and Support... Commitment to Solving 'People's Livelihood' Issues

President Yoon Suk-yeol stated on the 9th, "We must make 2024 the 'Year of Livelihood Recovery,'" emphasizing, "We must maintain a responsible attitude until the end to ensure that policies work well on the ground and that the public can feel the changes." This was a call to focus on solving issues closely related to the lives of the people in line with the government's new year national agenda of an 'Active Government.'

On the same day, President Yoon presided over a Cabinet meeting at the Yongsan Presidential Office and urged, "No matter how good a policy is, if the people are unaware of it and cannot benefit from it, that policy is no different from not existing."

President Yoon Suk-yeol is speaking at the Cabinet meeting held on the 9th at the Yongsan Presidential Office Building in Seoul.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The first Cabinet meeting of the new year, presided over by the President, focused on the message of 'livelihood management.' President Yoon said, "We must now accelerate the pace and make the new year a turning point for Korea's leap forward," and urged the Cabinet members, "I ask you to devote all your capabilities to creating genuine changes in the lives of the people."

In particular, President Yoon mentioned Kim Seon-tae, a public officer who operates the official YouTube channel 'ChungTV' of Chungju City, Chungbuk Province, saying, "He promotes policies in a fresh and entertaining way, and his subscribers have exceeded twice the population of Chungju. This kind of innovation is necessary." Since 2018, Officer Kim has been running 'ChungTV,' the official YouTube channel of Chungju City, promoting the region. Handling everything from video planning, filming, casting, appearing, to editing alone, Officer Kim has attracted attention by utilizing 'B-grade sensibility' and various memes, with the number of subscribers reaching about 520,000 as of this month.

President Yoon's direct introduction of new year policies that have received high public approval on this day is in the same context. He announced plans including ▲changing mortgage loans via a mobile application (app), ▲expanding the target and support amount for livelihood benefits and increasing parental benefits, ▲expanding Neulbom School, and ▲opening the GTX-A line between Suseo and Dongtan.

President Yoon's recent actions have also been aligned with 'livelihood.' In his New Year's address, he mentioned the economy 19 times and livelihood 9 times, expressing his determination to stabilize prices by leading economic recovery through export improvement. Early this year, he conveyed the message "We will devote all our efforts to the livelihood economy" during meetings with key national figures including the five top officials. At the 'Livelihood Discussion Meeting,' which was a kind of ministry briefing, he consecutively introduced popular livelihood policies such as 'price management through budget input' and 'financial support for small business owners and self-employed individuals.'

This reflects the new year national agenda of a 'government that acts to solve problems.' The Presidential Office is also considering a so-called 'credit pardon' that deletes delinquency records of loans for small business owners and vulnerable groups as part of efforts to revive livelihoods. The core aim is to alleviate the suffering of ordinary people caused by high interest rates and revive livelihoods. Currently, consultations with the financial sector are underway, and the Presidential Office explains that the goal is to support these individuals in conducting normal financial transactions through credit recovery.

President Yoon also reiterated the importance of 'breaking down departmental barriers.' Following his first weekly meeting of the year with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo the day before, he said on this day, "I hope all ministries break down walls in front of the people and become one team to swiftly and surely solve tasks." The judgment is that to create policies beneficial to the public, it is not enough for bureaucrats to simply visit livelihood sites to listen to difficulties and demands; ministries must join forces.

He also urged follow-up measures from related ministries, mentioning the permanent enactment of the 'Corporate Vitality Enhancement Act,' which temporarily helped corporate business restructuring, the enactment of the 'Personal Debtor Protection Act,' which requires delinquency interest only on overdue loan amounts, and the revision of the enforcement decree of the 'Outdoor Advertising Act' to strengthen the management of political party banners. Regarding the 'Winter Youth Olympics' to be held in Gangwon Province in ten days, he said, "The future generations participating from countries around the world will remember Korea through this event," and urged, "Please meticulously take care of all matters such as accommodation and safety so that they can make many good memories and return home."

Meanwhile, the Presidential Office is expected to establish a third deputy director position within the National Security Office dedicated to economic security as early as today. This decision comes from the judgment that timely response has become necessary as the global economy is increasingly intertwined with security due to issues such as the US-China hegemonic competition, worldwide bloc formation, and regional and international conflicts. The system within the Security Office will have the first deputy director in charge of diplomacy, the second deputy director in charge of defense, and the third deputy director in charge of economic security. The Presidential Office explained, "Diplomatic and economic relations are collapsing, and the international economic order, which was peaceful under past free trade, is currently undergoing a tectonic shift. Supply chains are also important, so someone must play the role of commander." Wang Yoon-jong, the current economic security secretary, is expected to be appointed as the third deputy director in charge of economic security. Secretary Wang has focused on supply chain diplomacy since the launch of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration in May last year as the economic security secretary.

President Yoon Suk-yeol is speaking at the Cabinet meeting held on the 9th at the Yongsan Presidential Office Building in Seoul.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

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