County Council Criticizes Unilateral Promotion of Large-Scale Project Officially Excluded from Regional Pledges
Seocheon County in South Chungcheong Province is facing controversy for unilaterally pushing forward the 'Gilsancheon~Panggyocheon Waterway Restoration Project' (commonly referred to as the canal construction), presenting it as if it were an official regional pledge of the Lee Jaemyung administration, even though it was excluded from the government's official regional pledges.
This project, which was excluded even from the pledges of County Governor Kim Kiwoong's transition committee due to its large scale, was nevertheless officially proposed by the county in a press release following a visit to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on July 29. This announcement drew strong opposition from the county council.
In particular, this project conflicts with policies for seawater circulation and ecological restoration at the Geumgang Estuary. It is being promoted under the justification of 'tidal power generation' and 'waterway restoration' without sufficient verification, fueling controversy over whether it is being inappropriately bundled with other projects.
On July 29, at the 2nd plenary session of the 322nd temporary meeting of the county council, council member Lee Kangsun criticized during the planning and budget officer's report, stating, "It was made a pledge after just one forum, without any reasonable basis for tidal power generation."
Council member Kim Ajin also pointed out, "I cannot understand why a project that was not even adopted as a national policy task continues to be pursued at a cost of over 300 billion won."
There is criticism that this matter, which was pushed forward unilaterally without prior consultation with the county council, is seriously undermining trust in local administration.
A county official stated, "The estuary project is about seawater circulation at the estuary, while the Gilsan~Panggyocheon project is about seawater circulation along the coast. The context is the same, but I think the difference depends on the location."
Meanwhile, as the county pushes ahead with this large-scale, unverified project under the pretext of being a 'Lee Jaemyung administration pledge,' a significant backlash is expected in the future.
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