A gala performance was staged on April 16 in Rimhung Street where the inaugural ceremony was held for the second-stage 10 000 flats in Pyongyang’s Hwasong area.

As the stage set was gorgeous with spotlights piercing the nocturnal sky of the capital city, a new song Dear Father , written by An Pun Hui and composed by Jong Chun Il, struck a responsive chord with the audience.

Although it was put on stage for the first time, tens of thousands of citizens present at the event joined famous singers enthusiastically as if they were already familiar with the song.

The song says that the people firmly believe in and revere the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un as their dear father, who takes care of the whole population with loving care as warm as the mother’s bosom and as benevolent as the father’s heart. It received thunderous applause from the audience as it depicts the most popular sentiment and feelings towards the leader in a warm, loving and friendly way and in plain language and bright melody so that everyone can sing it with ease anywhere and anytime.

Ko Chol Hwa, a civil servant, told that he did not dig even a spadeful of earth in the construction site of the second-stage 10 000 flats in the Hwasong area but he received a new flat gratis and attended the inaugural event in the presence of Comrade Kim Jong Un . The song seemed to reflect my gratitude and I could hardly hold back tears, he said, adding that his feeling would be shared by not only all the participants but the people across the country.

“In the 1990s, the Korean people favoured A Dear Name , a song that sings of the glory and delight of holding Chairman Kim Jong Il in the highest esteem,” Kang Ae Ryon, 66, living in Sosong District, said. “Today, listening to Dear Father , I thought of those days. I am pleased to hear another hymn of the times, and I am full of pride and honour of being a citizen of this country.”

There are many countries in the world and there are also many statesmen who claim to administer politics for the people. Yet, no one except Kim Jong Un takes full responsibility for the people’s life, destiny and future, showing close concern with great care.

The Korean people have every reason to praise their leader, who is devoting his heart and soul to the prosperity of the country and their wellbeing, as “dear father.”

Dear Father is not everything.

Over a dozen years since he was elected to the top posts of the Workers’ Party of Korea and the state, scores of hymns in praise of him have been created and disseminated. This indicates that the Korean people are determined to usher in a brighter future under the leadership of Kim Jong Un they laud as their great leader and dear father.

Ryon Ok