The inauguration ceremony for Kim Hyun-gi, the ninth directly elected mayor of Gangnam-gu, will be held Wednesday at 3 p.m. at the grand auditorium on the second floor of the Gangnam Community Center.
Gangnam-gu will hold the inauguration ceremony for Kim Hyun-gi, the ninth directly elected district mayor, Wednesday at 3 p.m. at the grand auditorium on the second floor of the Gangnam Community Center.
Reflecting Kim's longstanding philosophy, the ceremony is designed to be modest and inclusive — eschewing excessive formality and performative gestures in favor of an event that welcomes all residents, with particular consideration for the socially vulnerable.
Kim's morning schedule on inauguration day is drawing attention as well. At 7:30 a.m., he will join sanitation workers to clean the streets around Gangnam Square and Yeomyeonggil near Gangnam Station, listening to their concerns and hearing firsthand from those who quietly serve residents under the most demanding conditions. He will then greet civil servants arriving for work at the district office entrance before beginning the rest of his first day in office.
The ceremony will draw not only National Assembly members, Seoul Metropolitan Council members, Gangnam District Council members, heads of affiliated agencies and civic organizations, but also a large number of ordinary residents — the true protagonists of Gangnam. Community representatives who have dedicated themselves to the district and its most vulnerable members — including elderly people living alone, people with disabilities, multicultural families, youth, sanitation workers, exemplary drivers and volunteers — are set to attend as the driving forces of change.
The program will open with a string quintet performance by the Gangnam Symphony Orchestra, followed by a congratulatory message from President Lee Jae Myung, video greetings from the Seoul Metropolitan Government and domestic and international sister cities, congratulatory video messages from residents across all walks of life, remarks from locally elected National Assembly members, the oath of office, the inaugural address, and a mass choir performance by residents.
In the inaugural address, Kim will lay out his vision for the "Great Gangnam Transformation" — a blueprint for channeling the district's urban competitiveness into tangible improvements in residents' quality of life.
He plans to outline eight core policy priorities: accelerating reconstruction projects, easing the tax burden, building a seamless traffic system, developing Gangnam as an education and environmental city for future generations, making it the safest district through quality-of-life-enhancing development, establishing a K-Tech Valley, building a lifelong welfare system, and creating a culture and health city where amenities are within a 10-minute reach.
"I will turn residents' voices into policy and prove my ninth-term campaign pledges through action," Kim said. "I will absolutely achieve the Great Gangnam Transformation — energizing Gangnam and exciting its residents — to build a Gangnam that belongs not just to South Korea, but to the world."
seouldream01@heraldcorp.com
