On January 11, Juche 69 (1980), Chairman Kim Jong Il visited the Changgwang Health Complex, which was to be opened soon.
While making the rounds of the complex, he came to the stand of the swimming pool and looked around the interior, asking officials all of a sudden.
“Have you any idea to which institution the swimming pool would be affiliated?”
The accompanying officials were at a loss what to answer for the moment..
In fact, there was a lot of debate about it before the complex had been built.
But opinions differed from each other to reach a broad consensus. Almost all of them insisted that it would be reasonable to assign the pool to the professional sports institution both in view of precedents and cases in other countries.
An official told him about it and the Chairman said no to it at the moment.
“No. If we do so, many people can’t use the swimming pool freely.
“The bathhouse has been built for the people, so they should use the swimming pool attached to it. It is unreasonable for others to possess it exclusively.
“I think it would be better to put the swimming pool under the control of the bathhouse but operate it to suit the characteristics of swimming pool.”
Then he laughed out loud, saying that he thought about it and did not bring with him the officials of the Physical Culture and Sports Guidance Committee who wanted to follow him.
As it has been built for people, they should use it, and it should not be allowed to be exclusively used by only a few of them at the professional sports institution!
Indeed, the Chairman’s invariable and sole criterion for the utility value of monumental structures built for people was their interests and the benefits all of them should enjoy equally.
