Two district mayors turn personal ties to their hometowns into regional partnerships
Success, it seems, has a way of drawing people back to where they started. Even after rising to prominence, the pull of one's hometown rarely fades.
Jung Won-o, the former Seongdong-gu district mayor, established a vacation facility for Seongdong-gu residents in his hometown of Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, more than a decade ago.
Now his successor, Yu Bo-hwa — who served as deputy district mayor of Seongdong-gu before retiring from public service and winning election as district mayor in the ninth round of local elections — has turned to personal roots in Goheung-gun, also in South Jeolla Province.
On Friday, Yu held a senior staff workshop in Goheung-gun and signed a sister-city agreement with the county, turning a personal hometown connection into a foundation for inter-regional exchange and mutual development.
Yu's career in public service has been a story of uncommon perseverance.
A graduate of Suncheon High School, Yu entered government as a Grade 9 civil servant at the Military Manpower Administration rather than pursuing a university degree, due to difficult family circumstances.
After transferring to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Yu studied while working and eventually graduated from the University of Seoul with a degree in taxation.
Having served in key posts including head of the autonomous administration division and policy planning officer at the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Yu was recruited as deputy district mayor of Seongdong-gu under District Mayor Jung — a fellow University of Seoul alumnus — and supported the district's administration for four years. After leaving public service, Yu entered politics and won election as Seongdong-gu district mayor.
The arc of Yu's life — from a modest rural upbringing, through entry-level government work, to senior posts in Seoul's city administration and ultimately the top elected office in a Seoul district — reads like a drama series in its own right.
By hosting a senior staff workshop in Goheung-gun and formalizing a sister-city relationship there, Yu has found a way to share the success built in Seoul with the place it all began. That gives this visit a significance beyond the official.
It is, in every sense, a triumphant homecoming.
seouldream01@heraldcorp.com
