South Jeolla-Gwangju Special City Mayor Min Hyung-bae delivers a policy address at the second extraordinary session of the South Jeolla-Gwangju Special City Council held at the South Jeolla provincial office. [Provided by South Jeolla-Gwangju Special City. Redistribution and DB prohibited] <Yonhap>
South Jeolla-Gwangju Special City Mayor Min Hyung-bae delivers a policy address at the second extraordinary session of the South Jeolla-Gwangju Special City Council held at the South Jeolla provincial office. [Provided by South Jeolla-Gwangju Special City. Redistribution and DB prohibited]

"We must go beyond supporting the government's push for speed and respond with full force — even faster."

South Jeolla-Gwangju Special City Mayor Min Hyung-bae on Wednesday identified the development of a southwestern semiconductor cluster and the city's administrative integration as the special city's two core priorities. Concerns over the semiconductor cluster project have grown after Muan-gun repeatedly skipped meetings of a selection committee tasked with designating a candidate site for a military airport relocation. Min said the two projects would be pursued on separate tracks.

Speaking at an expanded executive meeting at the Muan office Wednesday, Min said, "This is a critical moment to chart a new future for the special city," adding that "at the center of that effort are two tasks: the southwestern semiconductor cluster and a genuine integration."

He said the semiconductor cluster "is not simply a regional project — it is a national strategy to redraw South Korea's industrial map and create a new engine of growth for the region." He called for an airtight operational support system to establish a semiconductor industry ecosystem in the area.

Min announced that the military airport relocation and the semiconductor cluster development would be pursued under entirely separate frameworks.

"The relocation of the military airport and the construction of a semiconductor main fab on that site are closely intertwined, but the two tracks can be — and will be — pursued in completely different ways," he said.

Min also said a proposed organizational restructuring plan, which has sparked conflict between civil servant unions, was nearing completion.

"A draft of the restructuring plan is nearly finished, and we are gathering input from unions, staff members and experts," he said. "Some say the outline has yet to emerge after nearly a month, but the pace itself is remarkably fast."

Min added that "the status, roles and authority held by public officials are not their own — they are delegated by the citizens who are the sovereign," and that officials "must carry a sense of historical responsibility, knowing that what they do will be judged by future colleagues and the public."


sij@heraldcorp.com