'A council accountable from budget to delivery'
Bong vows to restore lawmakers' standing and strengthen oversight of city administration
Pledges to run assembly on expertise and competence
Seoul Metropolitan Council member Bong Yang-soon (Democratic Party of Korea, Nowon 3) announced Monday her bid for speaker of the 12th council's first half, pledging to build a results-driven assembly that takes ownership of projects from budget approval through to completion.
In her announcement, Bong said politics and legislative work should be judged by outcomes, not words, and laid out a vision for a council that remains accountable until policies and budgets produce tangible improvements in citizens' lives.
Her governing philosophy centers on what she calls "from securing to finishing — seeing it through to the end." She said the council's role should extend beyond enacting ordinances and approving budgets to continuously monitoring whether policies and projects are working on the ground and verifying their results.
Bong said a lawmaker's responsibility does not end with securing funding — it means following through to ensure projects are carried out as intended and that residents can feel the difference.
Restoring the standing and independence of the Seoul Metropolitan Council is also a central campaign pledge. "Seoul council members are representatives chosen directly by citizens," she said. "The council must not be subordinate to the city administration — it must check city governance and offer alternatives based on the will of the people."
She also pointed to her reelection by a wide margin in the last local elections as evidence of public trust, saying she would channel that mandate into driving reform within the council.
Bong said she would support fellow lawmakers so they could take pride in their work and focus fully on their legislative duties, and pledged to create an environment where each member could make full use of their expertise and abilities.
On city governance, she said she would scrutinize the goals behind policies, how budgets are spent and what results projects deliver. She said she would closely examine major policies and budget projects to ensure Seoul taxpayers' money is spent on improving quality of life rather than serving political ends.
On running the council, Bong said she would prioritize expertise and competence over seniority or factional ties when making appointments. She also outlined plans to incorporate the fresh perspectives and on-the-ground instincts of first-term and youth lawmakers to foster a more dynamic council culture.
"The speaker's role is to support lawmakers so they can do their best work," Bong said. "I will build a council where the experience of veteran members and the passion of first-termers complement each other."
A two-term veteran of the 10th and 11th Seoul Metropolitan Councils, Bong has served as chair of the Democratic Party of Korea caucus's livelihood committee, chair of the environment and water resources committee, and as a member of the budget and settlement special committee. She has highlighted her experience running a community field office that connected residents' needs to policy and budget decisions. In the June 3 local elections, she won her seat with 72.12 percent of the vote — the highest share among Democratic Party of Korea candidates for the Seoul Metropolitan Council.
"I will restore the pride of the Seoul Metropolitan Council and build a strong assembly that sees citizens' mandates through to the end," Bong said. "I will devote all my energy to creating a council that delivers results citizens can feel and where fellow lawmakers can give their full abilities."
7toy7@heraldcorp.com
