The establishment of a brand new national medical school in Jeollanam-do is a problem that began with the president’s promise to the general public. The federal government’s announcement that it could establish a national medical school to deal with the medical gap and strengthen public medical services within the Jeollanam-do region, with the goal of opening within the 2026 school 12 months, raised great expectations amongst local residents.
Nevertheless, unexpected conflicts and confrontations arose throughout the means of preparing specific procedures and plans. Initially, a plan was proposed to determine a national medical school by integrating Sunchon National University and Mokpo National University, the 2 major axes in eastern and western Jeollanam-do.
Nevertheless, the direction modified as the federal government declared that an ‘integrated medical school’ was impossible. And South Jeolla Province’s unilateral contest policy sparked regional conflict between the East and West.
The eastern region (Sunchon City and Suncheon National University) strongly protested, demanding withdrawal of the general public offering, and Suncheon Mayor Noh Gwan-gyu and Suncheon National University President Lee Byeong-un continued their confrontation, citing the justification of strengthening local public healthcare.
As well as, the Progressive Party has consistently and strongly argued from the start that “we want medical schools and university hospitals in Suncheon and Mokpo,” and requested the federal government to determine two recent medical schools and hospitals.
Then again, the western bloc (Mokpo City and Mokpo University) was cooperative with Jeollanam-do’s conspiracy, however the conflict continued on account of the eastern bloc’s hardline attitude. In this manner, the competition process exposed the political interests of either side and the conflicting opinions of local residents, blocking cooperation.
On November 15, Sunchon National University and Mokpo National University agreed to merge for regional coexistence and harmony, and the push to determine a national medical school reached a brand new turning point. The 2 universities accepted the federal government’s ‘1 province, 1 national university’ policy and decided to cooperate throughout the larger framework of an integrated medical school.
This agreement between the 2 universities is the results of conflict and confrontation over the past 12 months, and was received by local residents as an indication of hope for the goal of expanding medical infrastructure. Nevertheless, within the means of going through these various difficulties, South Jeolla Province revealed several problems within the means of establishing a national medical university.
The primary is the difficulty of contest policy. Even when the president said ‘one’, the governor must have strongly maintained the position, “Explaining the realistic situation that Jeonnam faces, similar to the geographical location of the east and west, and saying that medical schools are needed in two places.”
Despite the indisputable fact that he must have played a job in persuading the federal government and uniting the residents of the province, the governor is criticized for saying, “He was trapped within the frame of the president’s ‘one’ word and tried to guide all the things himself.”
Relatively than alleviating regional conflicts, the governor intensified them. Particularly, mediation efforts to revive trust between Suncheon City and Mokpo City were insufficient. Above all, it was criticized for a ‘lack of communication’ and that the general public offering process was carried out unilaterally because the opinions of residents within the eastern and western regions weren’t sufficiently collected.
As well as, in consequence, the provincial governor and the mayor of Suncheon were in sharp conflict, damaging the credibility of the administration, exposing ‘political conflict’. Suncheon City protested against Jeonnam Province’s unilateral public offering policy, arguing that the establishment of an independent medical school was essential to strengthen public healthcare within the eastern region.
Suncheon Mayor Noh Kwan-gyu risked political conflict by declaring that the governor’s collusion policy would lead to alienating the eastern region. Ultimately, they acknowledged the inevitability of building an integrated medical school and agreed to cooperate for a ‘great deal’.
What should the federal government and residents do now? The President and government ministries must achieve the goal of opening schools in 2026 through prompt administrative procedures, as promised. We must recognize the importance of regional coexistence and cooperation beyond conflict.
After the establishment of a medical school, residents must actively take part in strengthening public medical services and improving local medical infrastructure. South Jeolla Province must look back on the policy operation that caused conflict amongst residents and promise to operate the administration based on fairness and transparency in the long run.
The establishment of Jeonnam National Medical University opened the potential of going beyond simply expanding medical infrastructure and becoming a logo of inter-regional harmony and cooperation.
Now, the residents of the province must move forward together under the common goal of building a medical school. We hope that the federal government and the area people will work together to assist Jeollanam-do turn into a sophisticated medical region.
Reporter Yang Jun-seok kailas21@aitimes.com
