‘What`s on Local Government Leaders` Mind?’

With the majority of the heads of local autonomous governments getting ready to run for the coming general election next year on April 15, there are already signs of unfair administration and promotions to win votes.

Heads of local governments allocate part of their budgets to projects that will win over voters and appoint their aids to major posts or to related agencies.

Under the present election law, for the head of a local government to run for the coming general election, he or she has to resign from the current public post by October 18, which is 180 days before the election. Thus, there will be an administrative vacancy until the election is held.

Journalists at the Dong-Ah Ilbo report that there are roughly 40 local government heads nationwide who are preparing for the campaign so far. There are about 20 heads of local government who cannot run for the post because of a law forbidding their three successive reappointments.

Three out of five incumbents in Daejeon and seven heads of local government in South Chungcheong, including the governor of South Chungcheong Province, Sim Dae-pyung, are expected to run in the election. If they do so, then half of all local government heads in Daejeon and South Chungcheong Province will be running in the general election.

In South Gyeongsang Province, Kim Hyuk-gyu, who is a three-term governor there, the head of a district office in Ulsan, as well as some incumbents, are all expected to stand for re-election.

Lim Dae-yoon, the incumbent in Dong-gu, Daegu has officially announced his running for the election.

People are saying that 2 district chairmen and 1 county governor from Gwangju and South Jeolla Province are running for the election.

District Chairman “A” of Ulsan was recently criticized by residents and local assemblymen for “unjustly executing the budget. He allocated most of the budget towards building roads and day care centers in the region where he will run as a candidate.”

County governor “B” of South Chungcheong Province is preparing for the campaign all-out, promoting some heads of township to his staff and appointing “his men” to woman’s organizations.

Due to this trend, some people are complaining that they “can`t tell whether these people are heads of local government or just election-candidates.”

The existing election law stipulates that by-elections be held twice a year, in June and October. Therefore, under the law, on resigning from their posts 180 days before the election, they can maintain their seat until October 18. In that case, eight months of administrative vacancy is unavoidable until June 2004 when the by-election can be held.

Not surprisingly, many people are arguing that there should be a revision to the current election law about holding the general election and the election for the heads of local government every two other years.

Professor Yuk Dong-Il, who is the dean of the social science department at Chung-Nam University, pointed out, “in order to minimize the side effects from this trend, in the short-term election campaign laws should be strictly applied, and in the long-term revisions to election laws will be needed.”

doyoce@donga.com