Mega development projects are for future, not approval ratings: Lee

Seoul, July 4 (IANS) South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Saturday rejected criticism by opposition sides that the government’s large-scale regional investment drive is aimed at boosting his approval ratings, saying the three “megaprojects” are designed to create new hope and a future for the country.

Earlier this week, the government unveiled its “three megaprojects” initiative, which envisions a national transformation driven by semiconductors, physical artificial intelligence (AI) and AI data centres, calling for a total investment of 4,755 trillion won (US$3.11 trillion), reports Yonhap news agency.

As part of the scheme, Samsung announced plans to build two memory chip fabrication plants in the southwestern city of Gwangju, while SK hynix said it will construct two fabs in the surrounding Jeolla provinces under a combined investment plan worth 800 trillion won.

“If the projects had been intended to manage approval ratings, they would have been launched ahead of the June 3 local elections,” Lee said in a post on X, adding that such a national transformation plan was something he had long dreamed of even before taking office.

Responding to claims from the main opposition People Power Party that political considerations were behind the projects, Lee said what matters more than approval ratings are “tangible results that improve people’s lives.”

Lee noted that the initiative would “create new hope and opportunities for the country,” vowing to make “all-out efforts to give hope, dreams and vitality to young people.”

Meanwhile, President Lee plans to preside over a meeting next week to review progress for a mega semiconductor production base in the country’s southwestern region.

The joint public-private meeting will be held at the presidential office next Monday to review the semiconductor cluster project in the southwestern region, according to presidential spokesperson Kang Yoo-jung.

The upcoming meeting will mark the first strategic review session since the investment plans were unveiled, as Lee has pledged to personally oversee the projects, stressing the importance of accelerating their implementation.

–IANS

na/