Choi Ho-kwon, Yeongdeungpo District Mayor, Always Appreciates Subordinate Public Officials' Efforts, Declines Ceremonial Events and Attends Alone... Employees and Residents Praise Him as a Role Model for Elected Officials
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] “Have you ever seen a district mayor like this?”
This is what an employee of Yeongdeungpo District Office said about Choi Ho-kwon, the mayor of Yeongdeungpo-gu.
Mayor Choi roams the local alleys from dawn. And he does it alone. For Mayor Choi, protocol and formality are absolutely rejected.
He even attends department-related events alone without bringing a manager. Mayor Choi emphasizes that “there is no need to accompany me; use that time to work.”
Mayor Choi always comforts the hard work of the employees. In a phone call with a reporter on the evening of the 8th, he said, “I am very grateful that the employees are doing their jobs well.”
He also added, “Indeed, Yeongdeungpo District Office public officials have a well-established basic attitude for the residents,” and “I am always thankful to the residents who give us the opportunity to serve them.”
In this way, Mayor Choi is famous as a district mayor who puts his employees first.
He is evaluated as a model elected public official who thoroughly practices ‘giving credit to others and taking responsibility himself.’
Throughout Yeongdeungpo, there are banners in the name of all Yeongdeungpo District Office employees saying “Have a warm Chuseok holiday” (photo).
Early residents took pictures of this banner and sent them to Mayor Choi, sending KakaoTalk messages saying, “He is different from previous district mayors and politicians.”
An executive of Yeongdeungpo District Office said, “Having worked closely with Mayor Choi, it’s not just once or twice that I have been amazed, wondering if such a person could really exist.”
It means that respect naturally wells up from the heart.
After taking office, Mayor Choi experienced a night staying up to restore the underground electrical facilities of an old apartment complex that had lost power.
He also went through hardships together with residents when many houses were flooded during the heavy rains in August.
Despite facing these two major difficulties immediately after being inaugurated as a first-term district mayor, he never showed a disturbed appearance and maintained an attitude of sharing the residents’ pain, gaining many fans around him.
Also, when residents faced difficulties, he deeply felt the importance of public officials and seems to have developed pride in public officials as the center of our society.
Based on this perception, he seems to have shown appreciation to his subordinate public officials whenever he had time.
Although he graduated from Seoul National University and has a brilliant career including passing the civil service exam, serving as director of the Culture and Public Relations Office at Yeongdeungpo District Office, policy secretary at the Seoul Mayor’s Office, administrative officer at the Blue House, Consul General in India, and exhibition research director at the National Gwacheon Science Museum, Mayor Choi is a quiet and humble person who never forgets modesty.
On the day before Chuseok, the 9th, Mayor Choi plans to have a busy schedule visiting residents in semi-basement rooms affected by flood damage, the jjokbangchon (small room village), Daerim-dong where many Chinese-Koreans live, Yeongdeungpo traditional market, the district office’s Chuseok comprehensive situation room, and the COVID-19 screening clinic.
Residents and employees continue to evaluate Mayor Choi Ho-kwon’s actions as an example of a “model elected public official.”
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