Dear Comrade

Dear Comrade Leader Episode 214

“her… … !”

A brief exclamation of surprise and admiration came out of Jeonghwan’s mouth.

Of course, he knew as soon as he saw what the object was and what it was for, but what surprised him was not the identity of the object, but the timing of its appearance.

‘So, it’s called a drone. I didn’t know that the person who first paid attention to the commercial potential of drones would come out of North Korea so quickly, didn’t I?’

As a leader and national leader, the policy he has pursued for the development of the IT industry has always been a priming.

As Jeonghwan himself is not an engineer and it is difficult to become a manager and jump directly into business management, all he can do is invest in companies that will succeed in the future or lead talented people with potential to succeed in the right direction.

Running a campaign to favor domestic products, distributing IT education infrastructure, and inviting others who inspire and serve as role models for others like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos were such things.

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North Korea’s next-generation Bill Gates began to emerge little by little.

“Wow, of course I know what he’s talking about other than just kids radio controlled cars! But look. It’s difficult now because the camera is heavy, but if the motor and transmission develop, you can attach a camera to it for aerial photography and military reconnaissance… … .”

“Great. investment decisions.”

“… … Now, are you for real?”

Choi Seung-il as well as Joo Seong-hwan looked back at him with a surprised expression at Jung-hwan’s cool decision.

Joo Seong-hwan, who left him on the list, thought he would make a decision after watching the demonstration, but he was stunned when he decided to invest so easily.

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No wonder the rumors that are secretly circulating among the republic’s stockbrokers and new wealthy people, ‘The general secretary is a capitalist prodigy born in a communist country by accident of heaven. mean?

Whether they do or not, Jeonghwan has a bright expression on his face.

“Then, of course not. Anyway, am I going to play a game here? First of all, let me tell you about our plans for the future, from business to actual sales.”

“I, there… … Comrade General Secretary, I was going to tell you right away… … Since this product is still a prototype, it has many defects, including the battery, to be sold. So, once you receive the investment, you have to focus on R&D with that investment for at least 3 years… … .”

“No problem. I’ll give you permission, so don’t worry and just engage in your research.”

“Am I really?”

A memorandum of understanding was signed and stamped on the spot.

At the end of the conversation, the applicant said that he would like to bring in his colleagues who work with SoftBank’s Fanuc, and the excellent control mechanics brains he had kept an eye on.

And of course, this request was also granted.

By the way, the applicant was the last person on the list (probably because he was added to the bottom of the list later), so that was the end of the Deep Red Investments investment meeting for the day.

Suddenly, morning passed, morning passed, and it was early noon, Jeonghwan stretched and murmured.

“It was a lot of hard work. Then everyone goes back and goes to work… … Let’s do our best.”

“It is an honor to be able to always be with you. Comrade general secretary. I don’t know what to do with myself because I always feel that the general secretary’s investment vision is lacking in the subject of entrepreneurship.”

Joo Seong-hwan, as always, picked up modesty, half-hearted and half-affected, and then bowed deeply and disappeared as it was.

However, Choi Seung-il, who was as busy as that, did not go out with him and kept his seat.

Jeonghwan saw that and said, ‘Um?’ He raised his eyebrows with a smirk.

He had read the expression on Choi Seung-il’s face that he had never seen, no, it would not be an exaggeration to say that he had seen it for the first time.

“It seems that Choi’s comrade has more to say. Then don’t stand there and talk freely.”

“… … Can I do that?”

“What else can’t be done? I can only guess what the content is, but let me tell you.”

“… … Then the general secretary and himself… … I believed in the relationship of trust and dared to say something.”

rather it went well

Choi Seung-il swallowed his saliva, even putting on a rhetoric that he seldom did.

If the leader has already guessed to some extent, he will be able to talk about his dissatisfaction without worrying about blasphemy.

“… … These days, Comrade General Secretary is so liberating from private enterprise workers that I am concerned that they may forget their original position and try to stand above the party’s head.”

“Witch, where do you think the position of companies in this republic is, Comrade Choi?”

“… … !!”

Rather, when Jung-hwan questioned, Choi Seung-il was forced to shut his mouth for a moment and ask himself.

While traveling abroad (at least far more often than the average of the people of the pre-opening republic), he himself saw, met, and negotiated with numerous businessmen, but never seriously thought about how to deal with them if such a thing happened in the republic.

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No, it would be correct to say that there was nothing to think about.

It is natural when private companies unrelated to the party did not exist before the opening, and even after reform and opening up, for 10 years after the reform and opening up, I have never thought that companies could dare to oppose or at least express dissatisfaction with the leadership of the Workers’ Party of Korea. because there was never

He had served as the president of the Investment Corporation, which had played a semi-national bank-like role in order to establish and nurture local enterprises under the command of the leader, but he never imagined that a corporation could surpass the party’s influence.

But now, without the consideration and support of the state, that is, the party, I had to admit that the days when it was difficult for North Korean companies to even guarantee their survival, let alone expanding their influence through capital accumulation, had passed, specifically after the North-South compromise.

At that time, Junghwan asked the second question without waiting for Choi Seungil’s answer.

“The reason why Comrade Choi asked this question is probably today… … No, I think it is because of the prestige of the continuous civilian workers, led by President Joo Seong-hwan. Am I wrong?”

“… … I did not deny it.”

“Of course, President Choi is not the only one with such dissatisfaction, but for the time being, we need to empower them. Today, the union of the main president and comrade is the same, and unnecessary government intervention in the IT industry will only hinder development. Considering the situation of our Republic, which is a latecomer than South Korea in the manufacturing industry, it must be even more so.”

As if understanding Choi Seung-il’s anguish, Jung-hwan walked towards the conference room window and pointed out the window.

From the 40th floor of the headquarters building of the Investment Corporation, almost the entirety of Pyongyang was spread out at a glance, from the former Office of the Workers’ Party of Korea No.

And, of course, Pyongyang is changing day by day.

“See over there? Across the Taedong River. The old office building before moving to the new building. When I decided to relocate most of the functions to this new building across the river, a lot of rumors circulated about it. Maybe you don’t even remember President Choi’s comrade?”

“You’ve heard it said, ‘Now this republic is the capitalist People’s Republic of Korea, we have crossed a river of no return’.”

If you open up the map of Pyongyang for a moment, there is one interesting and symbolic point about Pyongyang, which is divided into east and west by the Taedong River.

On the east side of the Taedong River, where the old city hall was located, there are the embassies of countries that were allies of communism on the ideological front, such as the Russian Embassy in West Gate Street and the Chinese Embassy in Jeonu-dong, as well as the Korea-China Friendship Tower and the Mansudae Monument.

On the west side, however, the embassies of capitalist countries were located in the opposite direction: Britain, France, Germany, and even the United States, which was built dramatically 10 years ago.

Of course, during the Cold War, it was the party’s consideration to prevent the diplomats of the two camps, who were growling at each other, from encountering each other, but it was a symbolic arrangement.

And it was clear that the general secretary and the WPK officials left the ward office where they had been located for more than 40 years and moved to the west of the Taedong River, where the embassies of Western capitalist countries are located, giving Pyongyang and all the people of the republic a certain signal.

“In the meantime, President Choi, comrade, has been an important person that I have not been able to leave out in managing the life of this republic right after the reform and opening up. So, I also believe in the trust that has been built up between me and Comrade Choi, and I will not disclose the final economic goal of this republic. If you hear this, you’ll understand why I’ve been saying that for the time being we should give business workers discretion.”

“It’s hard to deal with, but I listened with my ears open.”

“Actually, if it wasn’t for President Choi, who has been studying capitalism in depth and has been by my side all this time, I wouldn’t even be able to communicate with me. The final economic model of our republic… … What do you think is the ideal?”

Although the sentence was short, it could not be a question with a great meaning.

The joy that the supreme leader, whom he respects, both publicly and personally, has received full trust to the extent of sharing the vision of the national economy he had in his heart, could not help but fall into deep thoughts while pondering the answer.

And after a few minutes of silence, his mouth finally opened.

“I think when you look at the steps that Comrade General Secretary has shown you, trade, finance, Singapore… … Didn’t you go?”

“Almost right. To be more specific, it is a form where the small elite manufacturing industry, high value-added IT industry, oil industry, finance industry, and trading industry are the main sectors. Singapore 50%, the remaining 50% is mini UK… … How much?”

It was the role model of the North Korean economy, conceived by Jeong Hwan from the beginning and led for 16 years after taking office.

Jung Hwan has strong control, but only a system that harmonizes the state capitalist government, which is dominated by an honest and selected elite, and a system that guarantees maximum freedom in economic terms, leads to a prosperous nation while protecting the power of himself and the Workers’ Party of Korea. I thought it was the only way I could do it.

Although it is an Asian and pro-American country with the same cultural background, Singapore was an attractive model in that it achieved economic success by implementing an authoritarian development dictatorship rather than democracy.

However, unlike Singapore, which has a population of only 5.5 million, the decisive difference is that North Korea’s population is over 30 million and is still growing.

“Unfortunately, although this population of 30 million is larger than that of city-states, it has the disadvantage that it is insufficient to foster manufacturing that will generate foreign currency in the export market by accumulating technology in the domestic market. If so, should subcontractors become companies that represent the country like Taiwan down there?”

“… … Then, in an instant, the country became economically subordinate to other large powers.”

“Unfortunately, our republic is too late for system transition and too short of a population to foster and nurture a large-scale manufacturing industry like the shipbuilding industry in South Korea or the railroad in Japan across the sea. At best, it’s not easy to grow your own automobile company. That’s why we have to target the UK, not just Singapore.”

Of course, when Jeong Hwan established this vision, the British manufacturing industry, which had suffered from a serious illness, was reviving after Margaret Thatcher, so at first glance it might seem like an unrealistic goal.

However, considering that the country that started the Industrial Revolution and the homeland of Rolls-Royce is England, Britain’s manufacturing base is at least comparable to that of North Korea. would have hit

But Junghwan thought it was worth doing.

Aside from the more than six times the number of dependents, North Korea had something that Singapore and Britain did not have.

A geopolitical location close to a huge consumer market of 1.4 billion, oil, and 32 million people who are highly educated and extremely obedient to the government and leaders.

And above all, it was the leader who knew in advance the future of the next 10 years and all the ups and downs of the financial market.

“… … And a lot has already been done. The former Ssangyong and Preferred Motors, which were relocated from the South, moved all their production lines to Rasun and Chongjin, Republic of Korea after the merger, and modern electronics also manufactures memory and non-memory semiconductors, Pepsis, and LCDs in the Republic of Korea. A joint research institute with Exxon Mobil in the US will soon open for oil refining, and finance… … .”

“I know it best. I know that there is already a saying in South Korea, centering on the Economic Daily, that we should get rid of the regulations that continue our country’s complacency and incompetent government finance and learn the finance of the Republic of Korea, which has an aggressive and adventurous investment orientation. I have already heard that Lee Hyun-chang has rolled up his arms to ease financial regulations.”

“Actually, it’s funny. Our republic is the true government finance itself. And all that’s left is IT… … You must listen to me from now on, President Choi.”

Jeonghwan, who had been talking up to that point, turned to look out the window and fixed his gaze on Choi Seung-il.

“Soon they, the entrepreneurs of America’s Silicon Valley and the top streets of the Republic, will change the world forever. In fact, it is already changing. And our party policy is not to disturb them, at least for the time being.”

“… … !”

Considering the changes that the IT industry will bring to the world over the next 10 years and North Korea, the last runner among latecomers, to enter advanced countries, it is necessary to utilize 120% of the possibility of this industry that will bring the era of hyper-connection in 10 years. did.

It’s not unreasonable to say that people in this era, when the memories of the dot-com bubble burst are still vivid, don’t understand its potential.

But, in fact, no matter how many times I have to explain it now, how many people can understand it?

In time, they, and Choi Seung-il, will understand that Jung-hwan was right.

“The next few years will be the world of entrepreneurs. And especially, the elites of Topje Street like Comrade Joo Seong-hwan. The party will have to step down the stage for a while to give them space to let their imagination run wild and to envy all the people to be like them.”

“… … I knew what it meant. I think my concerns have gone too far.”

Choi Seung-il obeyed and bowed his head, and Jeong-hwan sighed inwardly.

The IT industry, no, in fact, most high-tech industries develop when a high degree of economic autonomy is granted to companies.

In order to achieve the seemingly contradictory goal of highly developing a free market economic system from an economic point of view while implementing a dictatorship based on economic power, leaders and the state must understand the characteristics of these industries and know how to make some concessions.

And Choi Seung-il was convinced, and the meeting ended perfectly with that.

As soon as news spread that he had received a large amount of investment from the leader with just one quadcopter like a toy, another legend was born in Topje Street and the IT industry of the Republic.

But that surprise was quickly overshadowed by a sudden news report from China.