Seoul Superintendent of Education Election Costs 60 Billion Won! ...How Will the City Education Office Cover It? 'Emergency'

Jeong Ji-woong, Seoul City Council Member, Criticizes 60 Billion Won Education Superintendent Election Cost Burdening Students
Delayed Preemptive Response to Superintendent Vacancy Disrupts Budget Management... November Budget Planning Timing Mismatch Requires Cost Coverage Through Existing Budget Adjustments... Council Member Jeong Ji-woong Expresses Regret Over Lack of Countermeasures for Massive Election Expenses Meant for Students, Emphasizes Election Neutrality

With the loss of office by former Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon, an emergency has been raised over the massive budget waste due to the by-election scheduled for October 16 and the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education’s ability to cover it.

On the 2nd, Jeong Ji-ung, a member of the Seoul Metropolitan Council (Seodaemun-gu 1, People Power Party), in the main business report of the 326th extraordinary session Education Committee, questioned the future countermeasures of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, which must hold a by-election due to the vacancy of former Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon.

Currently, with former Superintendent Cho losing his position as a result of the Supreme Court ruling, Deputy Superintendent Seol Se-hoon of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education is acting as the Superintendent’s proxy. He is expected to oversee all administrative affairs of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education until the by-election scheduled for October.

As the National Election Commission notified the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education that the by-election will be held on October 16, the Education Office, with about 40 days remaining, needs to make thorough preparations for election affairs despite the short period.

In his inquiry to Acting Superintendent Seol Se-hoon, Councilor Jeong Ji-ung asked, “The cost burden on the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education for election management is estimated at around 48 billion KRW, and the reimbursement cost for candidates is about 10 billion KRW. How will such enormous costs be covered?” urging the preparation of countermeasures.

Acting Superintendent Seol replied, “Since the submission deadline is September 15, this is a very urgent matter. The supplementary budget has already been approved, so it is difficult to newly allocate other budgets, and we have no choice but to resolve this through the use of existing budgets,” requesting close cooperation from related organizations such as the Seoul Metropolitan Council.

The use of the budget refers to the mutual flexibility between legislative subjects such as institutions, heads, departments, and accounts as defined by the budget, which means changes in the main content or scale of projects.

Regarding this, Councilor Jeong Ji-ung expressed regret that the large amount of 60 billion KRW, which is significantly higher than the cost of metropolitan governor elections, was not directly used for student benefits such as facility project support. He expressed concern that such a large-scale cost will remain a burden on the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education in the future. Additionally, he urged that the burden of running existing projects with reduced budgets due to decreased tax revenue should be “wisely resolved without changes to budgets directly related to students as much as possible.”

Acting Superintendent Seol responded, “We will carefully review the priorities and urgency of each scheduled project and prudently examine the available resources.”

Continuing his inquiry, Councilor Jeong emphasized that during the remaining period from September to October, with Chuseok and various holidays approaching, if school meetings or activities involving large gatherings are planned, the neutrality of the election must be emphasized more than ever at those locations. He recommended postponing or refraining from various events and political activities related to voting by high school seniors.

Acting Superintendent Seol expressed strong agreement, stating, “If various school events contradict the basic principles related to the election, it will be problematic, so we have already concluded meetings to block such issues in advance,” emphasizing continuous vigilance.

Finally, Councilor Jeong Ji-ung inquired about the sustainability of key policies, such as the implementation of Neulbom School, which will continue to be promoted in the future. He also urged that despite the vacancy of the Superintendent, major policies and plans be well implemented and preparations be made in advance to ensure no disruption in the upcoming 2025 budget formulation, concluding his inquiry.