People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok visits Ungdong Reservoir in Miryang, South Gyeongsang Province, a drought-affected area, on Friday morning. [Yonhap]
People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok visits Ungdong Reservoir in Miryang, South Gyeongsang Province, a drought-affected area, on Friday morning. [Yonhap]

People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok held a community meeting Friday in drought-hit Miryang, South Gyeongsang Province, pledging to work toward swift relief and recovery measures upon returning to the National Assembly.

Jang toured Ungdong Reservoir and Garye Reservoir in Muan-myeon, Miryang, listening to the concerns of farmers affected by the drought. According to the Korea Rural Community Corporation's rural water information system, Ungdong Reservoir recorded a storage rate of 0 percent Friday.

"If water is managed properly, it can be put to good use — but budgets for it have always been pushed to the back of the line," Jang said. "I will use this opportunity to raise awareness about water management and pay close attention to ensuring more funding goes into short-term water management projects."

He added that the reservoir bed was visible due to the lack of water. "I grew up in the countryside helping my parents farm, so I know all too well the heartbreak farmers feel when a drought cracks the earth and scorches their crops," he said.

Jang called on Miryang city and South Gyeongsang Province to work together on ways to provide assistance, and said the National Assembly would actively help wherever it could. He noted that officials from both the Korea Rural Community Corporation and Miryang city had shared suggestions at Friday's reservoir site visit on what they would like the Assembly to do.

He also said he would push for a disaster declaration for the South Gyeongsang region, pointing to a precedent from the previous year. "When the drought was severe in Gangneung, Gangwon Province last year, a disaster state was declared," Jang said. "I will work to have a disaster state declared for South Gyeongsang as well, and will actively coordinate with the government through the National Assembly to make that happen."

Jang also raised concerns about the strict activation criteria for the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters. "Under the law, the headquarters is supposed to be activated in the event of a drought, but the requirements are strict — three regions must be in the same situation before it can be activated," he said. "Even last year, when the drought was severe, the headquarters was never once activated. These requirements must be eased so that the headquarters is activated for South Gyeongsang this year."


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