City Council Regular Session 1st Plenary Meeting 5-Minute Speech... "Gap in Thoughts Widened Due to Lack of Dialogue"
Im Dal-hee, a member of the Gongju City Council in Chungnam (Democratic Party), proposed on the 3rd that the executive branch activate a dialogue channel to smoothly implement policies.
During a 5-minute speech at the first plenary session of the 253rd regular meeting of the Gongju City Council that day, Councilor Im said, "There have been cases where the lack of dialogue widened the gap in thinking, causing policy consultations between the council and the executive branch to deviate from their original intent."
He cited examples such as △ failure to support management stabilization funds for rice farming households △ failure of the project to restore the old Geumgang River waterway and utilize the Hwangpodotbae (yellow sailboat) △ operation of official vehicles.
Earlier, a media outlet pointed out on the 16th of last month that Mayor Choi Won-cheol of Gongju City had cut the entire 10 million won rental fee for official vehicles.
Also, the city included 600 million won in the supplementary budget this year for basic and detailed design service fees to promote the project of restoring the old Geumgang River waterway and operating the Hwangpodotbae between Gongju and Sejong, but the city council cut the entire service fee.
Regarding this, Councilor Im pointed out, "It has been distorted from its original intent, escalating into political and environmental issues."
He continued, "Even though we have different thoughts on a single agenda and topic, we must openly express our thoughts without hiding them to find a consensus. Such efforts are the foundation for Gongju City to show administrative and policy development beyond other cities."
In particular, he emphasized, "Let us view all problems arising from the lack of communication with a spirit of concession and dialogue. Even if there are differing opinions, let us listen attentively to each other with mutual respect and consideration, propose alternatives, and find the best common ground."
He added, "While it is appropriate for the council to faithfully perform its role as a check on the executive branch, if emotions get involved in this process, it can lead to a breakdown in communication with the other party, so measures should be taken to prevent such occurrences."
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