[Column] Asan City's Growth Engine Must Not Stop

2024 1st Supplementary Budget: Mayor Park Kyung-gwi's Pledge Budget Cut by 14.8 Billion Won
Cannot Throw Stones Until Final Judicial Decision

The "National Police Hospital Branch" to be established in Asan City, Chungnam, passed the Ministry of Economy and Finance's "3rd Fiscal Project Evaluation Committee of 2024" on the 2nd and was designated as a rapid preliminary feasibility study project.

The budget for Mayor Park Kyung-gwi of Asan City’s flagship pledge, now entangled in judicial risk, has once again failed to pass the city council, putting the momentum of Asan’s administration at risk of being halted.

According to Asan City Council on the 14th, the recent review of Asan City’s 2024 first supplementary budget and the third fund operation plan amendment resulted in cuts of 8.1 billion KRW across 81 general accounting items.

Key cuts included public horseback riding programs, production of the Yi Sun-sin opera, the International 100 People 100 Colors Biennale, the nationwide 200-ri bicycle race along waterways, Gokgyocheon canoe experience classes, and the establishment of a canoe experience center?mainly representing Mayor Park’s flagship pledges and key projects.

Since the launch of the 8th popularly elected term, budget cuts by the city council have been repeated. Starting with a 3.3 billion KRW cut to major pledge projects in the second supplementary budget of 2022, the first supplementary budget of 2023 saw cuts of 13.4 billion KRW, and the 2024 main budget review resulted in a record-high cut of 22.5 billion KRW.

Prior to the supplementary budget cuts, some civic groups and the Democratic Party’s Chungnam Provincial Party issued consecutive critical statements regarding Mayor Park’s overseas trips, and the city council boldly cut the budget.

Of course, Mayor Park’s decision to undertake overseas trips amid ongoing trials and some inappropriate explanations from the city side cannot be free from criticism for causing unnecessary controversy.

However, it is questionable whether Asan City Council, a partner in city administration, has ever shown active cooperation even once during Mayor Park’s term. Since the start of the 8th popularly elected term, the city and city council have lost the word ‘co-governance.’

The citizens’ hearts grow heavy as they watch this vicious cycle of endless political strife leading to budget cuts.

Despite nationwide population decline and aging trends, Asan continues to see steady population growth and has an average age of 40.3 years, making it a city with unlimited growth potential. If the administrative momentum keeps breaking at this critical crossroads between growth and decline, the city may face a crisis where it must worry about regression rather than growth speed.

Even in such difficult circumstances, Mayor Park’s achievements during his term?such as attracting a branch of the National Police Hospital and securing rapid preliminary feasibility study selection, innovating the Seongung Yi Sun-sin Festival, extending the GTX-C line to Asan, and establishing the Art Valley Asan brand?must be acknowledged.

Although Mayor Park Kyung-gwi is currently on trial for violating the Public Official Election Act, the judiciary has not yet made a judgment, and until the final verdict, under the ‘presumption of innocence’ principle, stones cannot be thrown at his normal administrative work.

What Asan City needs now is the operation of an uninterrupted growth engine.

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