"Annul It" vs "Intent Distorted"... Jiwon Park and Hyungbae Min Clash Over Jeonnam Medical School

Park claims "submission of false documents, unfair review"
Min immediately rebuts, "Never said Suncheon National University would be finalized"
Two senior politicians remain at odds over new medical school in Jeonnam

The conflict surrounding the establishment of a medical school in the Jeonnam region is escalating into a political dispute over the truth. When Assemblyman Jiwon Park from the Democratic Party of Korea (representing Haenam, Wando, and Jindo in Jeonnam) publicly revealed the contents of his meeting with Unified Mayor Hyungbae Min and strongly demanded an annulment of the selection of Suncheon National University for the medical school, Mayor Min directly refuted this, stating that "the intention was conveyed differently."

On September 12, Assemblyman Jiwon Park announced through his Facebook page that he had met with Unified Mayor Hyungbae Min for about 1 hour and 10 minutes in a separate room at the Jindo Nokjin Myeongryang Victory Festival site the previous day. The meeting was attended by a total of five people, including two senior officials from the special city government and one member from Park's office.

Representative Jiwon Park held a meeting with Tonghyeon Bae, the integrated market, for about 1 hour and 10 minutes in a private room at the Jindo Nokjin Myeongnyang Great Battle Festival venue. Photo by Representative Park Jiwon’s office

At the meeting, Assemblyman Park strongly insisted, "The decision in favor of Suncheon National University, which violated justice and fairness, must be nullified." He clarified his opposition, stating, "Even just by looking at the news reports that the university submitted false documents in its application for a medical school, it is clear the process was unjust, and the fact that the review body evaluated them using illegal documents is also an obvious case of unfair review."

Assemblyman Park went on to say that "Mayor Min took a firm stance, saying, 'As soon as a court injunction is issued, we will finalize the selection of Suncheon National University,' and ultimately, my meeting with him ended in failure."

Assemblyman Park claimed that Mayor Min suggested attracting a branch of one of Seoul's 'Big 5' hospitals or a top-tier medical school hospital to Mokpo as alternatives and stated he was in contact with several hospitals. Park also added that the President mentioned this to the heads of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Health and Welfare. He then stated, "I will share this with Mokpo Mayor Kang Seonghwi and Assemblyman Kim Won-i to seek a response plan together."

As Assemblyman Park's statement caused a stir, Mayor Hyungbae Min responded with his own statement on his Facebook page.

Mayor Min directly addressed Assemblyman Park's claims, saying, "Some points were conveyed somewhat differently from my original intention." He clarified that he never said, "I will finalize selection for Suncheon National University," but rather that he is "waiting for the court's decision and that the next steps would be taken in line with that decision."

Regarding Assemblyman Park's comment citing media reports to declare the entire review process unlawful and unfair, Mayor Min expressed regret, stating, "It is disappointing and hard to accept to characterize the entire review process as illegal and unfair based solely on reported information." He also drew a clear line, saying that expressions such as 'meeting ended in failure' or 'firm stance' did not match the atmosphere he remembers from the meeting.

Mayor Min emphasized, "The key issue was how to strengthen the healthcare system in the western region," and explained that various alternatives are being concretely considered, including attracting branches of large hospitals from the capital area as well as the National Medical Center. He added, "I have listened carefully to Assemblyman Park's point that the process in politics is also important, and the special city will explain the alternatives we are preparing to citizens at an appropriate time, gradually working towards establishing a 'locally-integrated medical system.'"

With Assemblyman Park's proactive demand for annulment and Mayor Hyungbae Min's direct clarification regarding the new medical school in Jeonnam, the outcome of this dispute is expected to hinge on the court's injunction decision and the alternative healthcare measures to be presented by the special city for the western region.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.