Kim Jong-un previously acknowledged that his country lacks modern medical facilities and called for improvements to the health care system.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un recently inspected the Pyongyang General Hospital construction site and criticized organizers for failing to set up a budget or properly plan the supply of materials, state media reported on Monday.
The undated visit to what is currently considered the country’s top construction project marks Kim’s first public site inspection since May 1. The Pyongyang general hospital is officially set to be complete by the ruling party’s founding anniversary on Oct. 10.
It is Kim’s second public visit to the hospital site after he opened its construction with a lengthy speech and ceremony on March 17.
In his latest visit, Kim was said to have “pointed out serious problems in [the] economic organization for the construction,” according to the English-language Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) report.
“He said that the construction coordination commission is organizing [the project’s] economy in a careless manner with no budget for the construction properly set up, yet,” the report stated.
Kim reportedly “severely rebuked” project organizers for “making a serious digression from the Party’s policy in supplying equipment and materials” and “burdening the people by encouraging all kinds of ‘assistance.’”
It is unclear what kind of “assistance” Kim has deemed inappropriate, though he is frequently reported in state media to thank companies and factories for providing materials, as well as those outside the ordinary supply chain, such as hotel and news agency workers.
