This is a petition posted on the Gyeonggi Provincial Government website on the 11th calling for the resignation of Gyeonggi Governor Choo Mi-ae.
The petitioner urged Governor Choo's resignation, stating, "Governor Choo pushed ahead with a fiscal emergency declaration, slashing even civil servant incentives by more than half, while personally contracting an official residence—a 47-pyeong apartment with a deposit exceeding 1.2 billion won—to live in alone."
Four days later, on the morning of today (the 15th), as the number of supporters surpassed 30,000, Gyeonggi Province changed the status of the petition to 'Answered'.
Once a petition is marked as 'Answered', residents can no longer participate in further agreement.
Gyeonggi Province substituted the governor's direct response with a briefing explaining the fiscal situation delivered yesterday by Spokesperson Hong Eun-kwang.
Gyeonggi Province responded, "Because essential budgets compiled last year reflect only nine months' worth, a significant number of livelihood-essential projects are facing suspension starting in October," adding, "We express regret over the distortion of facts as if well-compiled livelihood budgets were intentionally cut."
However, amid growing backlash over the cuts to livelihood budgets—such as the termination of postpartum care expense support—critics point out that by failing to fulfill the 30-day petition period and failing to align with the purpose of a petition that requires the governor to answer directly, the province may have attempted to prematurely block calls for resignation from intensifying.
Backlash among residents is growing as similar petitions continue to be posted on the petition board sequentially.
Amidst this, even former Gyeonggi Governor Kim Dong-yeon has stepped up to launch a direct counterattack against Governor Choo's raising of "responsibility" regarding the previous administration.
Through his social media today, former Governor Kim refuted, "The expansionary fiscal policy that injected funds when the economy was difficult during my term was a responsible choice to protect residents," and added, "The claim that Gyeonggi Province is currently in a fiscal crisis is unfounded."
In particular, he emphasized, "As an economic expert, Gyeonggi Province's debt-to-budget ratio is lower than the national average or Seoul," and "Objectively speaking, it is a manageable level through systematic management and revenue expansion."
With the former governor's rebuttal added to the mix, the battle surrounding the Gyeonggi provincial budget is expected to continue for the time being.
Reported by Lee Hyeon-yeong | Video by Jang Yu-jin | Graphics by Lee Jeong-ju | Produced by SBS Digital News
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