Kim Dong-yeon Meets Oh Se-hoon and Yoo Jeong-bok but Only Differences
"Gimpo's Incorporation into Seoul Is Absolutely Impossible"
On the 16th, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon, and Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok held a tripartite meeting regarding the issue of 'incorporating Gimpo City, Gyeonggi Province into Seoul,' which is being promoted by the People Power Party, but only reaffirmed their differences in position. Governor Kim, who has opposed the incorporation of Gimpo City into Seoul, repeatedly criticized it as a "political show" and a "public deception," calling it an electioneering act with no possibility of realization.
In an interview with CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' on the 17th, Governor Kim commented on the previous day's meeting, saying, "It was a topic that could not have any common ground from the beginning," and pointed out, "If it were truly for the citizens of Gimpo, the most pressing issue, the extension of Subway Line 5, should have been decided first."
He stated, "I can say with certainty that (the incorporation of Gimpo into Seoul) is not feasible," and added, "The essence of the mega-city is to decentralize from Seoul's unipolar dominance to a multipolar system nationwide, not to further enlarge Seoul but to revive the declining local areas," and questioned, "Is this really for the citizens of Gimpo to bring this up at this point without any preparation, or is it being used as an election ploy 5 to 6 months ahead of the election?"
Regarding the ruling party's mention of incorporating other metropolitan cities such as Guri, Hanam, and Gwangmyeong into Seoul following Gimpo, he criticized, "It is an attempt to cover one deception with another deception," and said, "It was the same pattern with the Yangpyeong Expressway; the core issue is being set aside, and instead of questioning who changed this and why, they want to argue based on the economic feasibility between the revised route and the original plan."
He continued, "On the very day the ruling party adopted the incorporation of Gimpo into Seoul as its party policy, the President went to the Local Autonomy and Balanced Development Day and advocated for the era of local governance. Where else can you find such a comedy?" and added, "Just like how the original plan for the Yangpyeong Expressway was maintained for 14 years and suddenly a revised plan popped up, this has political motives."
He warned, "If this is truly done for political purposes, it will increasingly fall into a quagmire and become a self-defeating move."
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