100 days after integration, Jeonnam Gwangju showed what they can do when they become one.
The semiconductor industry was designed by drawing electricity and water from Jeollanam-do on the site of the military airport in Gwangju, and the problem of relocating the military airport began to be solved along with the Muan development plan.
A solution was also presented to solve the Gwangju semiconductor company's wastewater problem with a facility in Jangseong-gun, Jeollanam-do.
Negotiation power with the central government also increased. The distribution plan for the 20 trillion won of integrated financial support promised by the government was specified, and a justification was prepared to demand that the two cities and provinces of Gwangju and Jeollanam-do share a share in the second public institution relocation as well.
Gwangju, South Jeolla Province, which has become one over the past 100 days, has shown the possibility of erasing the boundaries between separate resources and interests and uniting them into one solution.
The power of integration ultimately lies in creating options that were not available when separate.
However, although Jeonnam Gwangju showed what can be achieved through integration, it was unable to come together on how to move together after integration.
The selection of a medical school once again led to conflict between East and West, leading to a court case, and the integration of organization, personnel, and public institutions gave rise to regional conflict and internal backlash.
Citizens still face different transportation, welfare, and housing systems depending on where they live.
All conflicts cannot disappear in 100 days.
Trial and error and conflicts of interest are inevitable in the process of uniting two regions that have lived under different organizations and systems for decades.
However, saying ‘there is nothing we can do because it is in the early stages of integration’ cannot be an excuse for continued confusion.
Integrated conflict is a natural phenomenon, but it is entirely up to the integrated mayor to decide how to resolve the conflict and in what direction to lead the integrated city.
For this reason, what we will pay attention to as the 100 days pass is how Mayor Min Hyeong-bae is responding to the conflict and criticism.
In response to the assessment that he lacked driving force, Mayor Min emphasized direction rather than speed, saying, "I have a driving force that is second to none."
The expression 'learned skepticism' was also used to describe the local community's skeptical view of the semiconductor business.
It is understandable that in order to achieve integration results, the direction must be set accurately and the local community must work together, but it is difficult to dismiss the various questions and criticisms directed at the integrated city as simple impatience or skepticism about the speed.
This is because it is also a request for each citizen to see how their region, organization, and life will change amidst the huge change called integration.
What citizens are demanding from Mayor Min now is not only ‘breakthrough-type’ leadership, but also ‘integrative and persuasive’ leadership that mediates conflicts and resolves differences of opinion.
The ‘citizen sovereignty’ that Mayor Min has advocated since he was a candidate is also tested at moments like these.
It is not enough to explain policies that have already been decided and ask for consent.
It is necessary to first show and listen to opinions to the extent possible about what has been confirmed and what is being discussed, what the issues are, and by what standards a conclusion will be reached.
Some information is difficult to disclose because it has not been confirmed. However, since it has not been finalized, there are some issues that should be made public and opinions heard.
The most obvious way to reduce skepticism is to demonstrate the process and evidence.
What the Unified City needs to be wary of is not criticism itself, but the hardening of distrust without different opinions being able to be reconciled.
100 days of integration is too short to resolve all issues. However, it is by no means short enough to show what principles will be used to solve problems in the future.
What we need to show now is not the size of our united power, but the power to move together even while embracing different voices.
In a recent lecture, Mayor Min emphasized that companies, universities, media, and civil society should work together to make investment companies feel like they “made a good decision to come to Gwangju, South Jeolla Province.”
Citizen participation does not occur by ordering. It comes when you participate in the policy-making process and understand the direction of change.
In order for investment companies to feel that “it was a good decision to come to Gwangju, Jeollanam-do,” citizens must also be able to feel that “it was a good decision to integrate.” There are things that Mayor Min and the integrated city need to do after 100 days of integration.
