Jungwoo Ha Visits Gupo Market in Busan: "Sorry for Being Late... I Will Revitalize Buk-gu"

Jung-woo Ha, former senior AI advisor at the Blue House, is greeting merchants at Gupo Market in Buk-gu, Busan, on the afternoon of the 29th. Photo by Yonhap News.

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Jungwoo Ha, former Chief of Future AI Planning at the Blue House, who has officially announced his candidacy as the Democratic Party of Korea's candidate in the Busan Buk-gap parliamentary by-election, visited Gupo Market in Buk-gu, Busan to meet with citizens.

On April 29, at around 4:15 p.m., Ha visited the Buk-gu-gap regional committee after passing through Gupo Station in Busan to greet party members, and then at 5:20 p.m., he visited Gupo Market.

Regarding his decision to make Gupo Market his first stop in Busan, Ha said, "I thought it was the most symbolic place," adding, "I felt it was only right to greet my hometown residents first and say, 'The son of Buk-gu has returned.'"

When Ha arrived at the market, the crowd of citizens already gathered there began chanting "Jungwoo Ha." Expressing both excitement and slight disappointment, some said, "Why did you come so late?" and eagerly asked for selfies and autographs.

To merchants who mentioned Assemblyman Jeon Jae-soo, the current representative for the Buk-gap constituency, Ha bowed deeply and said, "I will continue where Jaesoo hyungnim left off and work to develop Buk-gu."

He then walked through various alleyways in the market, buying strawberries and tangerines himself and tasting fish cakes on the spot, expanding his direct contact with local residents.

Ha said, "Even when I was at the Blue House, I participated in policies to vitalize local business districts," and added, "I will develop strategies and carefully consider how to ensure growth, including modernizing local markets. With government support, I will make sure to revitalize them properly."

Earlier, Han Donghoon, former leader of the People Power Party, who had arrived in advance to appeal for support from merchants, had a surprise meeting with Ha. After a handshake and a hug, Han said, "It's been a while since we met. Let's do our best." Ha commented on the encounter, saying, "We talked about how glad we were to see each other after such a long time, and since election campaigns require a lot of stamina, we wished each other good health."

Later, when Lee Junseok, leader of the Reform New Party, was touring the market with Busan mayoral candidate Jeong Ihan and ran into Ha, Lee asked, "Are you a politician now?" When Ha replied affirmatively, Lee said, "If you've come, you have to win."

After finishing his schedule, Ha said, "Today, due to time constraints like the train schedule, I couldn't meet as many people as I wanted, but I will come back two or three more times to hear about the various concerns of the merchants and help resolve them."

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