Shinan Library Completed, but Opening at a "Complete Standstill"... Kim Geonan Blasts Communication Failure

Points to a "Lack of Administrative Communication" Linked to Delays in Township Office Construction
Also Raises Concerns Over Perfunctory Cooperation with Local Governments and Insufficient Education Funding

Assemblyman Kim Geonan (Democratic Party of Korea, Buk District 1), a member of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City Council, strongly criticized the lack of administrative communication over delays in the opening of Shinan Library during an administrative audit on Tuesday of nine education support offices in Jeonnam, calling for an effective education cooperation system with local governments.

The main issue at the audit was the haphazard administrative handling of Shinan Library, which was initially scheduled to open in July but has yet to open, with no date in sight, even after construction was completed. Although the library shares a parking lot and water and sewage facilities with the nearby Jido-eup office, delays in construction of the township office have prevented the library from even applying for approval to use the building.

Kim Geonwan, a council member of Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City.

Assemblyman Kim questioned the poor scheduling of projects linked to the library. He criticized the administration, saying, "If the library could not open even after its building was completed, then the completion date for the shared facilities and the conditions for use approval should have been incorporated into the opening plan as well." He added, "We need to examine when the impact of delays to the township office construction on the library's opening was identified and what measures were prepared."

He also pointed to the education office's failure to communicate, noting that it had allowed its schedule to be dictated by the local government while failing to explain the situation in advance to the council and residents. "I understand the rationale for sharing facilities, but residents must not be left unable to use the library for an extended period because schedules were not properly coordinated between the agencies," Assemblyman Kim said. "The incomplete construction work, requirements for applying for use approval, and deadlines for action by each agency must be clearly set out in coordination with Shinan County."

Vague operating standards for shared facilities and the lack of arrangements for staffing also came under scrutiny. Pointing to potential disputes over weekend library hours, parking lot use during township office events, and maintenance costs, Assemblyman Kim called for the operating conditions to be documented. He also urged officials to "inform residents of a feasible opening schedule and prepare in parallel for facility safety inspections, organizing the books, and staffing and programming for the five employees already assigned there."

He also criticized the perfunctory cooperation system with local governments. Noting that the budget for the education cooperation system (development committee) between Shinan County and the education office was only around KRW 700,000 to KRW 1 million, Assemblyman Kim said, "Shinan County has a population of 44,000 and an annual budget approaching KRW 1 trillion, giving it a very large fiscal capacity relative to its population." He stressed that "the education office must take a bold and proactive approach to its relationship with the county so that Shinan's education support budget, currently around KRW 2.18 billion, can be invested more broadly in the future of local children."

Shinan Education Chief Jang Taehwan promised to address the issues. "We will make up for the lack of administrative communication and clarify the operating standards for shared facilities so that we are fully prepared for the opening," Jang said. "We will hold a development committee meeting with Shinan County later this month and focus on major education cooperation proposals, including a language study trip to New Zealand for all sixth-grade elementary school students and survival swimming lessons using a public swimming pool."

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