Before the first Policy Sympathy Meeting after winning the June 1 local election, District Chief Ryu bowed to officials... Surrounding evaluations note, "Now District Chief Ryu seems to have fully transformed into a politician."
Ryu Kyung-gi, Mayor of Jungnang-gu (far left), is expressing his gratitude to the executives before the executive meeting held on the 7th.
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Ryu Gyeong-gi, the mayor of Jungnang-gu who succeeded in re-election in the June 1 local elections, drew attention by bowing his head to greet his staff.
After being elected as the 8th term mayor of Jungnang-gu, Mayor Ryu bowed his head in gratitude to the executives before the first policy consensus meeting held on the 7th.
It is by no means easy for a mayor to bow and greet the staff, especially for someone with an administrative background.
This is because the mayor is a powerful authority elected by the residents, holding personnel authority over about 1,500 employees.
However, after his successful re-election, Mayor Ryu received applause for greeting the staff with a humble attitude at the first executive meeting.
In a phone call with reporters on the afternoon of the 8th, Mayor Ryu explained, “It was a gesture of gratitude to the executives who worked hard during the election period.” He added, “I sincerely thanked the employees who tirelessly worked for the health of the residents amid COVID-19.”
The influence of the district office staff during the election process is significant. More than one-third of the approximately 1,500 employees reside in the area, and considering their families’ votes, they can affect the election outcome.
There is also an analysis that Mayor Ryu must have felt the importance of the staff once again while going through a fierce election.
Because of this, the prevailing evaluation is that after becoming a re-elected mayor through a difficult election, Ryu seems to have transformed into a full-fledged politician.
Graduating from Seoul National University’s Department of Political Science, passing the civil service exam, and having held key positions such as spokesperson, director of administration, and chief of the planning office in Seoul City, Ryu is regarded as the highest-ranking former deputy mayor of Seoul City. After being recruited and elected as the 7th term mayor of Jungnang-gu, he successfully settled major regional development projects within four years, including ▲the construction of the Bang Jeong-hwan Education Center ▲the maintenance of Mangwoo Park and establishment of an exhibition hall ▲the establishment of a sewing support center ▲the attraction of the SH headquarters ▲and the establishment of a branch of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts.
Additionally, through close interaction with Jungnang residents by ▲expanding the Jungnang Rose Festival ▲reading 1,000 books to preschool children ▲achieving 100 neighborhood cleanups ▲and holding Jungnang Masil to listen to residents’ opinions, he is now receiving abundant love from the residents of Jungnang-gu.
As a result of these efforts, despite very challenging conditions for the Democratic Party in this election, Mayor Ryu won by a margin of more than 10,000 votes compared to his opponent. This has led to forecasts that it will not be easy to break Mayor Ryu Gyeong-gi’s stronghold in Jungnang-gu.
Following his gratitude greeting to residents using a vehicle immediately after his election on the 2nd, Mayor Ryu visited Woorim Market on the 8th to greet the residents.
Mayor Ryu stated, “I deeply take to heart the encouragement to ‘do better,’ and in the 8th term, I will respond with a humble attitude by listening and communicating through early morning cleaning, Jungnang Masil, and neighborhood visits to make Jungnang a happy place.” He added, “As much as you have trusted and entrusted me, I will surely keep my promises to the residents and create a hopeful future educational city and a vibrant economic city together with 400,000 residents.”
The vision for the 8th term of Jungnang-gu consists of seven areas and 70 detailed projects: ▲Hopeful future educational city Jungnang ▲Vibrant economic Jungnang ▲Urban development to foster growth engines ▲Rapid residential environment improvement through redevelopment ▲Cultural Jungnang enjoyed by all ▲Warm welfare Jungnang together ▲and cooperative governance Jungnang with communication and participation from civil society.
The core pledges include the construction of the 2nd Bang Jeong-hwan Education Support Center, doubling school education support expenses, relocating the SH headquarters to Sinnae-dong and building a branch of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, integrated development of Myeonmok Administrative Complex Town, and rapid promotion of housing redevelopment projects.
Mayor Ryu is clearly establishing his position firmly among the residents of Jungnang-gu.
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