Seoul to form task force to study Gimpo inclusion

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, left, shakes hands with Gimpo Mayor Kim Byung-soo during their meeting to discuss the ruling People Power Party's city expansion plan at City Hall in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and Gimpo Mayor Kim Byung-soo held their first official meeting to discuss the ruling People Power Party’s (PPP) capital expansion plan at City Hall in Seoul, Monday. The opinions of citizens from Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province and Seoul are the most important factors in deciding whether to expand Seoul’s boundaries ti include Gimpo, Oh said.

Kim requested the meeting to discuss the megacity idea with the PPP’s proposal to include Gimpo and neighboring cities into the capital emerging as a major political agenda ahead of general elections slated for April next year.

During the meeting, Kim expressed the city government’s approval of the idea, explaining that Gimpo is isolated in Gyeonggi Province’s envisaged north-south division plan. Joining Seoul, Kim said, could create mutual growth and synergy for the two cities.

In response, Oh stressed the need for a detailed study of the possible effects of the city expansion plan and agreed to launch a joint research panel on Gimpo’s inclusion in Seoul. The Seoul city government also plans to launch a separate task force to conduct a comprehensive study on the inclusion of Gimpo and other adjacent cities into the capital.

Meanwhile, local governors and lawmakers expressed strong opposition.

Incheon Metropolitan City Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok, who served three terms as a ruling party lawmaker and two terms as a county governor in Gimpo, denounced the PPP’s megacity idea, calling it an impractical “delusion” and a “political show,” during a press conference at the city hall, Monday.

“Including Gimpo into Seoul has never been properly examined or gained public consensus. It is populism for the upcoming election,” he said, pointing out that the political issue was abruptly brought up five months before next April’s general elections without proper administrative due process, such as consulting local councils.

The party’s legislative push for a special act for the plan is also unlikely to pass as it only holds 115 seats in the Assembly’s current 300-seat system, he said, the plan will “instill expectations only to cause disappointment and confusion to the people of Gimpo.”

Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon also criticized the inclusion, Monday, describing it as “the ruling party’s irresponsible political show” and “a waste of energy on a national level.”

Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon speaks during a press conference in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, Monday. Yonhap

Kim argued that local governance, decentralization of power and balanced development between regions have been the country’s shared values among conservative and liberal administrations and condemned the ruling party for allegedly damaging the values in “a gerrymandering attempt.”

The PPP’s five-term lawmaker Suh Byung-soo also opposed the idea, Sunday.

“Making Seoul more of a mega-city will undermine Korea’s competitive edge,” he said, echoing Yoo’s view that the city expansion goes against the Yoon administration’s policy direction to revive rural communities.

Local lawmakers based in Gimpo, Rep. Kim Ju-young and Rep. Park Sang-hyuk of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), urged the PPP leadership to run for two parliamentary seats representing Gimpo and voiced for their constituencies at a press conference at the National Assembly, Sunday.

Kim and Park urged Seoul’s subway lines Nos. 5 and 9 to be extended to northern Gimpo, arguing traffic problems are more important than being included in Seoul for residents. They also spoke against building unwanted public facilities such as waste disposal sites and incineration plants to deal with waste produced in the capital.

Meanwhile, the PPP announced “new city project special committee” is the new name for its special committee on mega cities, Monday.

Headed by PPP lawmaker Cho, the special committee consists of 16 members including ruling lawmakers, scholars, lawyers and officials from the construction industry.