Daegu-Gyeongbuk Integration Virtually Collapsed... Hong Joon-pyo Says "Difficult to Get Provincial Council Approval"

Mayor Hong Jun-pyo "Apologies to City and Province Residents Who Supported Integration"

Hong Joon-pyo, the mayor of Daegu, declared on the 27th that discussions on the integration of Daegu and Gyeongbuk have effectively collapsed.

On the same day in the afternoon, Mayor Hong posted on his Facebook, "It is regrettable that the Gyeongbuk Provincial Council became a venue for criticizing the Daegu mayor today," adding, "It seems difficult to gain the council's approval."

He continued, "It seems that turning the integration discussions into a long-term task and focusing solely on Daegu Innovation 100 would be a way to resolve the conflicts between Daegu and Gyeongbuk."

Mayor Hong said, "I feel sorry and apologetic to the citizens and residents who have supported the integration of Daegu and Gyeongbuk," and added, "It is truly unfortunate that the local administrative reform efforts carried out over the past three years have failed due to differing opinions."

Earlier, Mayor Hong requested Lee Cheol-woo, governor of Gyeongbuk Province, to clarify by the 28th whether they would accept the integration plan proposed by Daegu. Governor Lee suggested concluding the issues regarding city and county authority and the government office building by next month.

Daegu proposed having special metropolitan government offices in three locations: Daegu, Andong, and Pohang, while Gyeongbuk Province insisted on maintaining the current plan of having offices only in Daegu and Andong.

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