National Assembly Speaker Cho Jung-sik met with new Presidential Chief of Staff Lim Kwang-hyun and urged him to improve working conditions for firefighters and secure safety budgets. Lim pledged an active response, saying the president is also deeply concerned about firefighter conditions.
Cho spoke on the 21st to Lim, who visited the National Assembly to pay a courtesy call after taking office. "There was a tragic incident recently in which a firefighter died in the line of duty while fighting a fire," Cho said. "Please pay particular attention not only to honoring the deceased and supporting the bereaved family, but also to securing firefighter safety budgets and improving working conditions so that such deaths do not happen again." Fire Lt. Kim Jin-seok died in the line of duty on the 16th at the scene of a factory fire in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province.
"I hope the honor due to firefighters who devote themselves to the lives and safety of the people can be respected," Cho said. Lim replied: "The president is extremely interested in the issue of working conditions for firefighters, who protect the lives of the people. We will prepare so that nothing is neglected."
Cho also called for next year's budget bill to be handled within the legal deadline. "Budget deliberations will begin soon after the parliamentary audit ends," he said. "I hope the government will fully explain the matter to both the ruling and opposition parties and cooperate so that next year's budget bill can be handled smoothly within the legal deadline." Lim said: "We have carefully prepared a livelihood budget for the people and a growth budget for the nation's future. We will do our best to communicate with the National Assembly so that it can be handled smoothly."
Cho also stressed the government's role in reviving the household economy and promoting balanced regional development. "Please see to it that South Korea's growth leads to growth for everyone and that the warmth of the household economy spreads evenly," he said. "I hope there will be substantive progress, such as enacting the mega special zone law, so that region-led growth leads to a great leap forward for South Korea." Lim responded: "We will see to it that the benefits of improving macroeconomic indicators, such as exports, are distributed evenly across all income groups, and we will attend to balanced regional development without neglect."
Cho asked Lim to "carry out the president's governing philosophy well, keep a broad watch on public sentiment and serve as a close bridge between the National Assembly and the presidential office." Lim said: "We will do our best to produce results that the people can feel in their daily lives and to communicate and govern cooperatively with the National Assembly."