Oh Se-hoon: "We Must Uphold the Principle of Expanding Doctors... Will Consult Citizens on the Lee Seung-man Memorial Hall"

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Regarding Gyeonggi Province's Absence from Mobile Car: "It Means Refusal... Should Participate If Beneficial to Residents"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon stated regarding the medical crisis caused by the collective resignation of resident doctors that "the principle of expanding the number of doctors must be upheld." He aligned with the government's judgment that more medical personnel are needed as society ages, emphasizing that "ultimately, the structure can only be resolved by expanding the number of doctors."

On the 27th, in a phone interview on SBS Radio's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show,' Mayor Oh responded this way when asked how to resolve the ongoing 'strong versus strong' standoff between the government and doctors.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In particular, Mayor Oh pointed out the 'distorted structure,' saying, "When resident doctors go on strike, large hospitals come to a standstill. In Korea, the proportion of residents is between 35% and over 40%, but in other countries, it is about 10%." He added, "We will do our best to minimize the gap in medical care," explaining that Seoul City extended weekday outpatient hours at eight municipal hospitals, which previously operated until 6 p.m., to 8 p.m., and that the emergency rooms of Seoul Medical Center, Boramae Hospital, Dongbu Hospital, and Seonam Hospital are operating 24 hours to provide emergency medical services.

Regarding the promotion of the Lee Seung-man Memorial Hall, he said, "Every historical figure inevitably has both merits and demerits," and explained, "The construction promotion committee states that it is not a place to simply list and honor achievements but a place to handle merits and demerits in a balanced and objective perspective so that future generations can understand." He continued, "Looking at other countries, most founding presidents have places that commemorate both merits and demerits," adding, "So far, evaluations of the first President Lee Seung-man have focused only on the negative side, but objectively looking at historical materials, there are also such merits, which should be passed on well to future generations."

Regarding Songhyeon Green Plaza in Jongno-gu, which is mentioned as a likely site for the memorial hall, he said, "The memorial hall will occupy less than one-tenth of the entire area and be about three stories high, so I believe it will not significantly damage the landscape," adding, "I will ask for citizens' opinions after these points have been sufficiently publicized."

On the popularity of the 'Climate Companion Card,' he evaluated, "The usage rate among people in their 20s and 30s is about 56%, and it seems that public transportation fares were quite a burden during the most active social period." However, regarding Gyeonggi Province not participating in the card, he expressed regret, saying, "It is as if Gyeonggi Province refused. Some individual local governments want to participate, but they hesitate because of insufficient funding, and there is also a technical difficulty if the system is not integrated."

Mayor Oh said, "More than one million Gyeonggi residents commute to Seoul, and even if it were not one million but 10,000, if it benefits the residents, it should be done," and questioned, "Gyeonggi Province says it cannot support it because only some basic local governments benefit, but if they raise such a principle of fairness, aren't they overlooking the fact that Seoul's traffic congestion has been greatly worsened by metropolitan buses coming from Gyeonggi to Seoul?"

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