▲ The leader of the ruling People Power Party, Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon, looks around the control room of the Gimpo Goldline subway connecting the city of Gimpo, west of Seoul, with the capital, in this photo taken Oct. 30, 2023. (Yonhap)
▲ Rep. Hong Ihk-pyo (R) speaks at a meeting of the Democratic Party at the National Assembly in Seoul, on Nov. 1, 2023. (Yonhap)

PPP-Gimpo

PPP to propose special law to include Gimpo into Seoul this week

By Kang Jae-eun

SEOUL, Nov. 1 (Yonhap) -- The ruling People Power Party (PPP) plans to propose a special law this week that calls for incorporating the adjacent city of Gimpo into the country's capital of Seoul, a senior party official said Wednesday.

The envisioned law is the first step in the PPP's plans to include the northwestern city of Gimpo, a move widely seen to shore up voter support ahead of next year's general elections.

"We plan to propose a special law within this week," a senior PPP official said in a call with Yonhap News Agency, adding that the party could form a special task force to discuss further details.

Talk of Gimpo's incorporation into Seoul came as the Gyeonggi provincial government seeks to divide the province into North and South Gyeonggi provinces. The Gimpo city government says it wants to be part of Seoul, rather than being part of either of the Gyeonggi provinces.

The PPP has also said it could consider incorporating other adjacent cities if residents agree to it, under what it calls the "mega city" of Seoul.

Gimpo argues most of its residents commute to Seoul and its incorporation will help alleviate the notoriously congested roads and subways connecting the two cities. It also notes that parts of Gimpo, especially near South Korea's second gateway, Gimpo International Aiport, already became a part of Seoul decades ago.

Residents also expect a rise in their home prices.

In contrast, critics say that making Seoul geographically larger would do nothing more than aggravate the centralization of infrastructure and people already concentrated in metropolitan areas.

The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) has criticized the plan as merely a political tactic for the elections. Instead, they proposed the PPP carry out a complete overhaul of how South Korea classifies various districts.

"It is very inappropriate to raise such an issue as a means of populism," DP floor leader Hong Ihk-pyo said in a radio interview. "Instead we could consider a complete overhaul of the administrative system, including metropolitan cities, counties and wards."

Meanwhile, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said he will meet the Gimpo mayor next week and discuss their thoughts on the issue.

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