Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon visited former President Lee Myung-bak at the Yeongpo Building in Seocho District, Seoul, on the afternoon of 4th. The meeting followed a forum held in the morning at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry on 'regulation reform aimed at growth centered on corporations.' At the forum, Mayor Oh delivered a keynote speech on the theme 'KOrea Growth Again (KOGA·Growing Again Korea).'
Mayor Oh and former President Lee discussed regulation reform and the upcoming publication of Mayor Oh's book 'It's Growth Again.' Mayor Oh's book is being published six years after its last publication in January 2019.
Former President Lee mentioned Mayor Oh's book, saying, 'The title is well written at the right time,' adding, 'What is most needed right now is growth rather than using an elegant title oddly.' In response, Mayor Oh noted, 'The essence is that regulation reform greatly contributes to growth.' Former President Lee responded, 'You've handled the agenda well.' He continued, 'Everything is difficult right now,' and 'growth has nearly stopped. We need to give hope to the people.'
Former President Lee stated, 'To achieve growth, we need regulation reform,' and added, 'We have too many regulations. The digital age has passed, and the AI age is upon us. All realities are heading into the AI era, but politics remains analog.'
In particular, former President Lee commented on Mayor Oh's keynote speech, saying, 'From what I see, the Seoul mayor went beyond what he needed to say,' to which Mayor Oh replied with a smile, 'I went a bit overboard.'
Former President Lee referred to his experience attending an international conference during the global financial crisis shortly after taking office, stating, 'When we faced the international financial crisis, people said, 'Korea is in big trouble,' but we grew by 0.2% while the world experienced negative growth. At that time, the British Prime Minister even helped me at the conference. Instead of wasting time for the meeting, there are things that need to be heard,' and added, 'To enhance our national status, our economy must first grow. Only then can we compete with the world.'
In response, Mayor Oh remarked, 'So, I whimsically named the slogan KOGA (KOrea Growth Again·Growing Again Korea),' and stated, 'Didn't Trump use MEGA (Make America Great Again) during his campaign? KOGA, it's growth again.' Former President Lee responded, 'Well done,' and Mayor Oh added, 'I intend to keep using it.'
Former President Lee mentioned, 'Politics is currently focused on policies aimed at gaining votes,' adding, 'Since policies are geared toward garnering votes, we have limitations to our development.' He also remarked towards Mayor Oh, 'You have a lot of experience as the Seoul mayor. Seoul has nearly all the functions of the state. You are executing that experience.' In response, Mayor Oh said, 'Thanks to everyone paving the way, I am just following along.'