Gyeonggi Provincial Council established a communication channel for the National Assembly in Yeouido… Local council’s first Seoul office

A plaque unveiling ceremony was held on the 24th… Supporting legislative activities at the National Assembly, promoting communication with the National Assembly and promoting provincial assembly policies, Chairman Yeom Jong-hyeon “Expects ‘flexibility’ in improving the autonomy and decentralization system”

For the first time as a local council in the country, the ‘Gyeonggi Provincial Council Seoul Office’ opened near the National Assembly in Yeouido on the afternoon of the 24th. Currently, 16 cities and provinces across the country, including Gyeonggi Province, are operating Seoul headquarters offices, but the Gyeonggi Provincial Council is the first to establish a Seoul office at the local council level.

The Provincial Council attended the opening ceremony of the Seoul office on this day, including Chairman Yeom Jong-hyun, Vice-Chairman Nam Gyeong-soon (People Power Party, Suwon 1), Democratic Party representative Nam Jong-seop (Yongin 3), National Assembly Secretary General Kim Jong-seok, and Gyeonggi Province Senior Secretary for Political Affairs Kim Dal-soo.

The Seoul office is located about 400 meters away from the National Assembly entrance. It has an exclusive area of ​​59㎡ (approximately 18 pyeong) and is equipped with a conference room, smart work space (office), and reception room. A staff member from the Congressional Secretariat will be stationed here and will be responsible for various support tasks.

Chairman Yeom has been promoting the establishment of a Seoul office as a priority project to build a close cooperative relationship between the Provincial Council and the National Assembly. It was first presented on August 9 last year, when Chairman Yeom announced specific plans to ‘strengthen local autonomy and decentralization’ at a press conference marking the first anniversary of his inauguration. Afterwards, field surveys and budget preparation were conducted starting in September of the same year, and preparations for full-scale opening, including office environment maintenance, were completed this year.

Chairman Yeom said, “In order to realize true local autonomy and decentralization, we need to be proactive in establishing laws and systems appropriate for the strengthened status and role of local councils.” He added, “It is the largest local council in the country and the eldest brother of the 17 metropolitan councils. “As such, the Gyeonggi Provincial Council will take the lead in developing local councils and realizing the value of local decentralization,” he said.

At the same time, he said, “We expect that the flow of communication and exchange, including personnel exchanges with the National Assembly, which began after the inauguration of the Speaker, will open,” and “We hope that it will establish itself as a ‘communication forward base’ between the National Assembly and the National Assembly in relation to legislative issues, which is the core role of the Gyeonggi Provincial Council.” “He added.

Vice Chairman Nam said, “I hope that the establishment of the Seoul office will serve as a catalyst for active exchange with the National Assembly.” Representative Nam added, “I hope this will be a starting point for expanding legislative exchanges between local councils and the National Assembly in the era of local autonomy.”

Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon delivered his congratulatory message through Senior Secretary for Political Affairs Kim, saying, “I am confident that the Seoul office will become an important place that conveys the voices of Gyeonggi Province residents throughout the country and plays a greater role in the development of local autonomy.”

With the opening of the Seoul office, it is expected that institutional improvements to strengthen autonomy and decentralization, such as the enactment of the Local Council Act, will gain momentum.

The Seoul office △identifies legislative trends in the National Assembly and provides data △supports legislative activities of provincial lawmakers visiting the National Assembly △supports communication and publicity of legislative policies in the National Assembly.

In the first year of opening, the Provincial Council plans to focus on promoting the facilities so that the Seoul office can be widely used and support legislative activities on current issues of the Provincial Council. Starting next year, we decided to gradually expand functions such as ‘discovering mid- to long-term cooperation tasks with the National Assembly’ and ‘building a legislative network with the National Assembly and related organizations.’

Reporter Cho Young-dal [email protected]