"We Just Elected Them, and Already Overseas Training?" Public Outrage in Daegu

▲ Daegu Metropolitan Council

The Daegu Metropolitan Council is facing controversy over the appropriateness of its plan to push for overseas training by standing committee, just about a month after its launch.

According to the Daegu Metropolitan Council on Thursday, each standing committee plans to embark on a 3-night, 4-day overseas training trip starting in September.

Nearby Asian countries such as Chengdu in China, Osaka in Japan, and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam are being discussed as training destinations, with a budget of slightly over 2 million won allocated per council member.

However, citizens are casting a skeptical eye on the new council pushing for overseas training before focusing on legislative activities so soon after its inauguration.

A citizen identified as A said, "It is very disappointing to see the newly elected local councilors heading off to overseas training rather than showing us how hard they are working for the citizens."

Voices of criticism are growing louder, especially as local residents are experiencing severe hardships due to high inflation and climate disasters recently.

In fact, a significant number of basic local councils in the Daegu region, including district and county councils, have consecutively cancelled or completely re-evaluated their overseas training plans for this year as a way to share in the suffering of residents.

In response, the Daegu Metropolitan Council explained, "There are opinions that the trips are necessary in their own right, as we judge that China, for instance, is advanced in AI and has much to learn from regarding education in the Daegu region."

It also added, "We are still at the stage of gathering opinions by standing committee, and specific schedules have not been finalized yet. Even if we go on the training, we plan to choose Asian regions to cut costs."

(Photo: Yonhap News)

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