Gwangju Seo District Council, Ordinance on Operation of Resident Participation Points System

Signatures Accepted via Resident e-Direct System Until June 13

The Gwangju Seo-gu Council (Chairperson Jeon Seungil) completed the petition for the district's first resident ordinance initiative, the "Gwangju Metropolitan City Seo-gu Resident Participation Point System Operation Ordinance," on the 18th.

The resident ordinance initiative system allows residents to petition the local council for the enactment, amendment, or repeal of an ordinance with a certain number of joint signatures. This is an important means of direct democracy, enabling residents to create ordinances necessary for their community themselves.

This year (2025), the number of resident signatures required to propose an ordinance in Seo-gu is 3,447 (at least one-seventieth of the total number of eligible petitioners).

Gwangju Metropolitan City Seo-gu Resident Participation Point System Ordinance. Provided by Seo-gu Council

The "Gwangju Seo-gu Resident Participation Point System Operation Ordinance," submitted through this resident ordinance initiative, is a system that encourages active resident participation in various systems and policies implemented in Seo-gu by awarding points for participation and providing incentives upon reaching a certain number of points.

This ordinance is the first to be petitioned to the Seo-gu Council since the enactment of the "Gwangju Seo-gu Resident Ordinance Initiative Ordinance." Nineteen representatives, including Kim Jaeman, Lim Hugun, Sim Hyekyung from the Resident Autonomy Council executive board, and council member Ahn Hyeongju, submitted the petition. In January, the Resident Autonomy Council executive board and council member Ahn Hyeongju held a meeting to discuss the ordinance initiative, creating an opportunity to reflect residents' opinions in policy.

Additionally, in February, at the 328th temporary session, Seo-gu council member Ahn Hyeongju proposed a full amendment to the "Gwangju Metropolitan City Seo-gu Resident Ordinance Initiative Ordinance," reflecting matters delegated to ordinances by the "Resident Ordinance Initiative Act" and supplementing deficiencies in the current ordinance, thereby lowering the threshold for resident ordinance initiatives.

Council member Ahn Hyeongju, who prepared the resident ordinance initiative system together, stated, "While local governments are growing through the activation of resident autonomy, there have been no opportunities for residents to create ordinances themselves. I hope this will become a progressive model where local residents discover, propose, and institutionalize ordinances needed in the community."

Meanwhile, the signature period for the "Gwangju Seo-gu Resident Participation Point System Operation Ordinance" runs from the 18th to June 13, and residents can conveniently sign via PC or mobile device through the Resident e-Direct System.