Im Man-gyun, a three-term Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker representing Gwanak District 3, was elected speaker of the Seoul Metropolitan Council for the first half of the 12th Assembly.
The council held its first extraordinary session of the 12th Assembly on Tuesday afternoon, electing a speaker and two deputy speakers. Seong Heum-je of the Democratic Party of Korea (Eunpyeong 1) and Lee Seong-bae of the People Power Party (Songpa 4) were elected deputy speakers for the first half of the term.
An opening ceremony followed the elections, featuring an oath of office by the 12th Assembly members, an inaugural address by Speaker Im, and congratulatory remarks from Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent Jeong Geun-sik.
In his inaugural address, Im said the public's will behind the opposition-majority composition of the Seoul Metropolitan Council was a call to "restore parliamentary integrity." He vowed to build "a strong and capable council that decides when to stand firm and when to move forward based solely on the interests of citizens — not unconditional opposition, unconditional cooperation, unconditional checks, or unconditional silence."
He also pledged to restore that integrity by establishing citizens as Seoul's irreplaceable competitive strength, promising to make choices that revive livelihoods, take decisive action to ensure safety and pursue investment that opens the future.
Im also addressed the need to strengthen the standing of local councils. "Parliamentary integrity can only be realized through the independence of local councils," he said, adding that he would work to enact a local council law — a policy priority of the Lee Jae Myung administration — to mark a new era in which local councils take center stage in the history of local autonomy.
The 12th Seoul Metropolitan Council is expected to begin full legislative activities once the assembly organization is complete, including the appointment of standing committee members and the election of standing committee chairs.
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