Mayor Yom Tae-young of Suwon: "I will create a special city that citizens can tangibly experience"

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Jung Jun-sung] Mayor Yom Tae-young of Suwon announced: "I will create a special city led by and tangibly experienced by citizens."

At the 'Suwon Special City New Year Press Conference' held in the central conference room of City Hall on January 27, Mayor Yom stated: "Our city is establishing and promoting a 'Suwon Special City Authority Acquisition Promotion Roadmap' to secure authority befitting the status of a special city," and added: "Based on three major pillars—enhancing autonomy and accountability, and increasing efficiency—we will secure administrative and financial authority to raise the level of administrative and welfare services."

The 'Suwon Special City Authority Acquisition Promotion Roadmap' includes: ▲Expansion and operation of task force teams for securing authority ▲Organizational restructuring to ensure uninterrupted implementation of special city affairs ▲Strengthened communication and cooperation among the four special cities councils ▲Establishment of consultation channels with the Ministry of Interior and Safety and Gyeonggi Province.

Mayor Yom Tae-young stated: "The launch of Suwon Special City marks a precious moment that will be inscribed in the history of local self-governance in the Republic of Korea—a local administrative restructuring that has shifted from top-down implementation according to national policy to bottom-up implementation through citizens' voluntary efforts," and added: "Suwon Special City will play a leading role in decentralization of local autonomy and serve as an excellent 'testbed' for the expansion of local authority."

He further emphasized: "To make the special city live up to its name, legislative support for special city affairs and financial authority must be enacted promptly," and stressed: "We must concentrate our efforts to ensure the Second Comprehensive Local Transfer Act and the amended Local Decentralization Act pass through the National Assembly without delay."

He also urged: "'The protagonist of Suwon Special City is the citizen,' and asked: "Let us together create a living history of local autonomy so that Suwon Special City becomes the primer for genuine decentralization of local governance."

<Full Text> "2022 New Year Briefing Regarding the Launch of Suwon Special City"

Esteemed citizens of Suwon and members of the press,
I wish you a Happy New Year. I am Yom Tae-young, Mayor of Suwon Special City.

The first month of the new year is already drawing to a close. While we feel honored and delighted about the 'launch of Suwon Special City,' we are also troubled by the gloomy atmosphere of the 'pandemic situation,' with mixed emotions. My shoulders feel heavy with the responsibility of beginning a new journey as a special city amid the unrelenting tension of quarantine efforts.

Nevertheless, I must first express my gratitude. To all who contributed their strength to allow us to take this momentous first step toward becoming a special city, and to all medical personnel on the frontlines who are making tireless sacrifices and efforts, and to all members of the local community who are participating in quarantine activities and fulfilling their duties despite hardship—I bow deeply and offer my sincere gratitude.

Launch of Suwon Special City

Citizens of Suwon and members of the press,
On January 13 of this year, the 'Suwon Special City,' embodying the aspirations of our citizens, was launched.

As I mentioned in my New Year's address and remarks commemorating the launch of the special city earlier this year, this glorious moment of becoming a special city is an achievement accomplished together with many people.

It reflects the dedication of the esteemed citizens of Suwon, our public officials, and many who provided tremendous support during difficult times.

In particular, the journalists present before me today also played a significant role. You contributed by identifying agendas for institutional improvements, raising them as key issues, and building consensus within the local community and political circles. I express my gratitude for this.

The past decade of striving toward special city status flashes before my eyes like a 'revolving lantern.'
By its scale, Suwon has metropolitan-level administrative demands, yet we have been constrained by the limited authority and status of a basic local government.

For many years, we were trapped in a dichotomous system of local administration dividing metropolitan and basic tiers and could not take a single step forward.
During the 19th and 20th National Assembly sessions, bills related to special cities were proposed but were repeatedly automatically shelved without proper review.

As soon as the 21st National Assembly began, we invested all our remaining energy in legislative efforts, including a comprehensive revision of the Local Autonomy Act, clinging to a thin thread of hope. We did everything we could and visited every place possible, earning the nickname 'apostle of local decentralization,' and gained consensus with citizens' thoughts on changing the irrational local administrative system.

With that momentum, local administrative restructuring, which had previously been implemented top-down according to national policy, was restructured bottom-up through the voluntary efforts of citizens in cities with populations exceeding one million. This has been recorded as a precious moment that marked a new chapter in the history of local self-governance in the Republic of Korea.

Going forward, basic local governments with populations exceeding one million due to urban growth or city/county mergers can acquire special authority anywhere, so it is expected to have a major impact on future changes in local administrative organizations. This is why Suwon Special City must play a pioneering role in local decentralization and serve as an excellent 'testbed' for expanding local authority.

Our city has made extensive preparations ahead of the launch of the special city even after the comprehensive revision of the Local Autonomy Act passed the National Assembly.

To ensure that the practical benefits of special city status return to citizens, we established the 'Suwon Special City Promotion Task Force' to identify special city affairs while strengthening cooperation and solidarity with Goyang City, Yongin City, and Changwon City.

We are tying the first knot of citizen benefits. The welfare benefits that special city residents can receive have increased. The criteria for calculating the basic property amount, which determines the targets of social welfare benefits, have been changed to 'metropolitan city standards,' the same as those for special cities and metropolitan cities. As a result, nine social welfare benefit systems—including basic pension, disability pension, disability allowance, and emergency welfare—have been improved, allowing an additional 22,000 Suwon citizens to receive welfare benefits.

The special city is not about 'special privileges.' Rather, it is about gradually recovering the rightful rights of residents of large cities who have been relatively disadvantaged due to irrational systems.

2022 is the inaugural year of Suwon Special City. Now we start again.

'Making the special city worthy of being a special city.' To do so, legislation supporting special city affairs and financial authority must be enacted promptly.

Last year, the four preliminary special cities and the Ministry of Interior and Safety formed a 'Special City Support Council' to coordinate efforts. We requested the review of 86 functions and 383 unit affairs from the Presidential Decentralization Committee, which, after deliberation, made a final resolution that 'special cities may be transferred' 13 functions and 141 unit affairs.

The Second Comprehensive Local Transfer Act passed through the state council on January 25 and was submitted to the National Assembly. The affairs for cities with populations of one million or more in the Second Comprehensive Local Transfer Act include support for registration and deregistration of non-profit civil organizations (15 unit affairs), designation and evaluation of tourism special districts (5 unit affairs), and consultations on designation of new technology startup agglomeration areas (1 unit affair)—a total of 3 functions and 21 unit affairs.

Additionally, the amended Local Decentralization Act, which specifies special affairs so that special cities can secure their own revenue and implement projects for citizens, has been submitted to the National Assembly and is awaiting assignment to a subcommittee for review. The amended Local Decentralization Act, initiated by Representatives Baek Hye-yeon and Park Wan-soo and others, includes 24 special affairs such as charging and collection of metropolitan transportation facility fees, establishment and operation of local land expropriation commissions, charging and collection of environmental improvement fees, charging and collection of waste disposal fees, and charging and collection of ecosystem conservation fees. We must concentrate our efforts to ensure all legislative bills pass through the National Assembly without delay.

Our city is establishing and promoting the 'Suwon Special City Authority Acquisition Promotion Roadmap' befitting the status and substance of a special city.

Through three major pillars—strengthening 'autonomy' and 'accountability,' and increasing 'efficiency'—we seek to secure administrative and financial authority for improvements in administration and welfare services.

This year, we will further activate the 'Suwon Special City Citizen Participation Headquarters' to create a special city that is led by and tangibly experienced by citizens. At the organizational level, we will expand and operate TF teams for securing authority and reorganize our structure to ensure uninterrupted implementation of special city affairs. We will also continue to strengthen communication and cooperation among the four special city councils and establish consultation channels with the Ministry of Interior and Safety and Gyeonggi Province.

'Special City' is a local self-governance model being attempted for the first time in the Republic of Korea.

Faced with an unprecedented path, our excitement and anticipation are greater than our hesitation. Each step taken by our Suwon Special City will be remembered and recorded in the history of local self-governance in the Republic of Korea.

I often recall the citizens who have always supported us through difficult times and the confident public officials who work alongside them. Taking what we have built up to this point as nourishment, we must gather our strength and wisdom to bear greater fruit.

The protagonist of Suwon Special City is the citizens of Suwon Special City.
When each participating citizen and each public official who reflects on citizen happiness fulfill their respective responsibilities and roles, the special city will soon draw close before us.

Let us walk together toward completing the special city.
Let us together create a living history of local autonomy so that Suwon Special City can serve as the primer for genuine decentralization of local governance. Great citizens make great cities.

When I took office as Mayor of Suwon on July 1, 2010, I promised to create a 'Human-Centered City Suwon,' and over the past 12 years have worked hard to make Suwon a city where people are central. I feel pride when I hear evaluations that the accomplishments our city has achieved have contributed to innovation in other regions and our nation.

This year, the keyword for Suwon's new year initiatives is 'New Beginning with Closure.' It means to value completion and plan new beginnings.
Going forward, I will do my best for the development of Suwon. I hope that members of the press will provide much support so that the 7th popular election term comes to a beautiful close and the 8th term takes a strong first step. I sincerely thank you for actively informing citizens about Suwon's administration over the past 12 years and sometimes providing direction for Suwon's future.

Recently, the spread of the Omicron variant domestically and internationally is severe.
The number of daily new confirmed cases nationwide exceeded 14,000 on the 27th, and Suwon's confirmed cases surpassed 300 for the first time on the 26th (353 cases). The weekly detection rate of Omicron variant infections in the country exceeded 50% for the first time last week.

Our city has a population of approximately 1.22 million, the largest among Gyeonggi Province's 31 cities and counties, but ranks 5th in the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases, with the lowest incidence rate per 100,000 residents (as of January 25 at 0:00).

This is thanks to citizens' active cooperation with quarantine efforts. There are concerns about Omicron spread over the Lunar New Year holidays.
I have posted an appeal to citizens on my Facebook. Please refrain from visiting your hometowns out of concern for your parents' health. For those who must inevitably visit their hometowns, I strongly recommend that only those who have received the third vaccination go for a short stay. I urge you to actively participate in the third booster vaccination and observe personal quarantine guidelines.

Thank you.

January 27, 2022
Mayor of Suwon Special City Yom Tae-young