By Yi Whan-woo
Nam Kyung-pil, the governor-elect of Gyeonggi Province, is expected to try and help President Park Geun-hye and the ruling Saenuri Party regain public confidence in the wake of the Sewol ferry disaster.
The majority of over 300 passengers who were killed or went missing in the sinking of the ferry on April 16 were students from Danwon High School in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province.
And Nam, 49, put public safety as a priority among his main election pledges.
"I believe the voters casted their ballots in the hopes of making Korea safe," Nam said in a speech, Thursday. "I will keep my promise to make Gyeonggi Province safer than ever and I will fulfill my goal by collaborating with the opposition parties."
Nam won a two-way race against the main opposition candidate, Kim Jin-pyo of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD) in what was seen as a key battleground in the quadrennial elections.
The Saenuri Party will continue to dominate the country's largest local self-governing body with population of over 12 million for 12 straight years. Nam's predecessor, Kim Moon-soo, was also from the same party and served two consecutive terms previously.
After a stint as a journalist at a local paper, he was first elected a lawmaker in the July 1998 by-election in Suwon, a provincial city where he spent his childhood. He ran for and secured the National Assembly seat his later father, Nam Pyeong-woo previously occupied. Nam senior died aged 62 while serving a second term as a lawmaker for the city.
Nam said during his election campaigning that he will "make sure to win to protect President Park."
To carry out his pledge on public safety, he said he will hold meetings to discuss ways of enhancing a safety control system in the region. The meetings will be chaired by the governor and will run be composed of experts from the public, military as well as private sectors, according to Nam.
He added he will take all political and administrative responsibilities in the event of disasters, allowing emergency management officials to cope with the situations exclusively when accidents occur.
Nam also said he will establish a disaster control center that will capitalize on big data for officers at police, fire stations and other emergency-related organizations to use high-volume data efficiently and prevent accidents.
In his 10-year development plan for north of the province, Nam promised to include Paju in one of the three railways to be constructed for the Great Train Express (GTX) project. This is a high-speed underground rail network project to connect Seoul with its populous neighboring towns.
Nam said he will build 6,000 homes, including 3,500 apartments, over the next four years to help people reduce their housing costs.
He added he will set up a new bus transit center for commuters. Nam also plans to run an additional 179 buses during rush hour in the morning.
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| Nam Kyung-pil, governor-elect of Gyeonggi Province |
The majority of over 300 passengers who were killed or went missing in the sinking of the ferry on April 16 were students from Danwon High School in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province.
And Nam, 49, put public safety as a priority among his main election pledges.
"I believe the voters casted their ballots in the hopes of making Korea safe," Nam said in a speech, Thursday. "I will keep my promise to make Gyeonggi Province safer than ever and I will fulfill my goal by collaborating with the opposition parties."
Nam won a two-way race against the main opposition candidate, Kim Jin-pyo of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD) in what was seen as a key battleground in the quadrennial elections.
The Saenuri Party will continue to dominate the country's largest local self-governing body with population of over 12 million for 12 straight years. Nam's predecessor, Kim Moon-soo, was also from the same party and served two consecutive terms previously.
After a stint as a journalist at a local paper, he was first elected a lawmaker in the July 1998 by-election in Suwon, a provincial city where he spent his childhood. He ran for and secured the National Assembly seat his later father, Nam Pyeong-woo previously occupied. Nam senior died aged 62 while serving a second term as a lawmaker for the city.
Nam said during his election campaigning that he will "make sure to win to protect President Park."
To carry out his pledge on public safety, he said he will hold meetings to discuss ways of enhancing a safety control system in the region. The meetings will be chaired by the governor and will run be composed of experts from the public, military as well as private sectors, according to Nam.
He added he will take all political and administrative responsibilities in the event of disasters, allowing emergency management officials to cope with the situations exclusively when accidents occur.
Nam also said he will establish a disaster control center that will capitalize on big data for officers at police, fire stations and other emergency-related organizations to use high-volume data efficiently and prevent accidents.
In his 10-year development plan for north of the province, Nam promised to include Paju in one of the three railways to be constructed for the Great Train Express (GTX) project. This is a high-speed underground rail network project to connect Seoul with its populous neighboring towns.
Nam said he will build 6,000 homes, including 3,500 apartments, over the next four years to help people reduce their housing costs.
He added he will set up a new bus transit center for commuters. Nam also plans to run an additional 179 buses during rush hour in the morning.
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