Kwangsik Bae, Mayor of Bukgu District in Daegu, who is expected to run for Daegu Mayor in next year's local elections, stated on May 26, "The city of Daegu should postpone the design competition for the new city hall."
On this day, Mayor Bae released a statement saying, "Building a house can be seen as a process of capturing one's philosophy and dreams for tomorrow. In order to build a new city hall that reflects the citizens' vision for Daegu's future, as will be shaped through the upcoming presidential and next year's local elections, it is only appropriate for the city of Daegu to postpone the design competition it is currently pursuing."
Mayor Bae said, "The direction of national affairs will be renewed through the presidential election, and the process of confirming the citizens' consensus on Daegu's future through next year's local elections is an essential step in laying the foundation for Daegu's growth through the new city hall." He warned, "Nevertheless, in a situation where both the central government and Daegu city administration are in a state of vacancy and confusion, making a decision on the symbol of Daegu's future and pushing forward with the critical project of a design competition for the new city hall?which will involve hundreds of billions of won in taxpayer money?will inevitably lead to procedural issues and will require additional time and financial costs from the next city administration."
Mayor Bae also stated, "The construction of Daegu's new city hall should not be like designing a house for a tenant to live in. Rather, the role of citizens as the true owners of city administration must be strengthened. By following democratic procedures in which the presidential and local elections function as means to gather citizens' input, we can maximize the positive energy from building the new city hall and minimize any accompanying issues. Nonetheless, I cannot help but be concerned about focusing solely on the legitimacy of administrative procedures." He added, "I hope that by temporarily 'pausing for breath' in the currently ongoing design competition for the new city hall, this project will become an opportunity to strengthen democratic legitimacy through direct democracy and further solidify the purpose of local autonomy."
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