Jeong Won-oh Calls for a Public Children's Hospital; Oh Se-hoon Promises a Job-Experience Theme Park [June 3 Local Elections]

\r\n\r\nOn Children's Day, the rival Seoul mayoral candidates unveiled a series of pledges for children. People Power Party candidate Oh Se-hoon proposed infrastructure and public-sector cost support as key measures to help children grow through play. Democratic Party of Korea candidate Jeong Won-oh said he would establish a system to manage children's health.
At an event held on the 5th at the Seoul Kids Cafe Green Green, part of the Seoul International Garden Show in Seoul Forest, Seongdong District, Oh unveiled his pledge package titled "Seoul, a City Where Children Are Happy." The proposal reflects his belief that cities should institutionally guarantee children's right to play. He said he would create an environment where children can develop career interests and creativity through play. To that end, he plans to place experience- and play-based infrastructure across Seoul so that every child can enjoy the same opportunities regardless of where they live.
One of Oh's flagship proposals is "Seoul Children's Imagination Land," a public job-experience theme park. It would be built at eight new hubs across Seoul, including Gangbuk, Seongbuk, and Gangseo, and offer career exploration and creative activities at lower fees than private facilities.
He also plans to promote a project called "Children's Art Seeds," which supports practical arts education for elementary school students. The program would provide eight months of training in vocal music, instrumental music, theater, and dance for students in grades 3 through 6. The goal is for the public sector to take direct responsibility for arts education and reduce the burden of private tutoring. By absorbing part of the cost in arts and physical education, the plan is also seen as an effort to ease dependence on private education.
The Seoul Kids Cafe, which has already won strong support from many parents as a low-cost option, will be expanded to 404 locations by 2030, roughly double the current number. At least one infant-only kids cafe will be established in each district, and Seoul-style Kids Cafe Green Green sites linked to forests and the Han River will also be introduced in every district. In addition, 30 mobile playgrounds under the name "Here and There Kids Cafe" will operate on weekends to create more varied play environments.
Oh said, "Investing in children's happiness is the surest way to design Seoul's future." He added, "Building on the changes already underway in Seoul, I will overwhelmingly create an environment where parents can feel at ease and children can play freely."
In a pledge announced on the 4th ahead of Children's Day, Jeong said he would "make Seoul a city where a child's health becomes the standard." He explained the purpose of his proposal by saying, "It takes a village to raise a child," and added, "Now I will build a system in which all of Seoul takes responsibility for our children's health and growth."
Jeong's plan is to ensure children's health across the city through a cooperative system between the public and private sectors. He also announced plans for Seoul Metropolitan Government to take the lead in expanding infrastructure for child-focused medical institutions, including the establishment of a public children's hospital.
More specifically, Jeong proposed a pledge to build a "mobile child health-care system." Under the plan, local pediatric clinics would visit childcare facilities such as daycare centers and kindergartens to monitor children's health. The city also plans to fully expand a home-visit health-care program that is currently limited to some daycare centers. Experts would check children's physical condition and developmental stages four times a year, and based on the results, the city would build a system to manage disease care and healthy habits.
He also vowed to establish a 24-hour pediatric care system for children. In five districts that currently lack Moonlight Children's Hospitals and Assurance Clinics, which provide nighttime treatment and hospitalization, the city plans to accelerate the designation of new Moonlight Children's Hospitals. To address the shortage of pediatric care in Seoul's southwestern region, it also plans to expand Our Child Safe Hospitals and Pediatric Emergency Centers. In Northeastern Seoul, the city will push again for the establishment of a Seoul Metropolitan Children's Hospital.
Jeong also announced a series of pledges aimed at overcoming the decline in children's literacy that has become a concern in the age of AI. He said Seoul Metropolitan Government would actively support SMOE's "2030 Plan for Reading, Discussion, and Humanities Education." He also added plans to create Children's Reading Playgrounds near residential areas and assign professional Book Masters to build children's reading infrastructure.
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ronia@fnnews.com Reporter Lee Seol-young, Kim Hyeong-gu Reporter