Because of the teasing of giving the bag to South Korea’s first lady, Kim Keon-hee, the president and the country’s ruling party are in serious trouble ahead of the election.
The level of tolerance for corruption varies. For example, in South Korea there was a scandal about the gift of a $2,200 bag to the first lady. By the standards of Ukrainian corruption, this is ridiculous, but in Korea, because of this, the victory of the ruling party in the election is at risk.
Stand with a bag
Last year, a video surfaced on the Voice of Seoul YouTube channel, showing a man named Choi Jae-yong giving the first lady a Christian Dior bag.
He secretly shot this video himself using the camera built into his watch.
The footage shows Choi entering the store to buy a gray and blue calfskin bag, with the receipt showing its value at 3 million won ($2,200). Choi then went after Covana Contents, a company owned by the First Lady. There, Choi meets with Kim, who asks him, “Why are you bringing me these things?”
According to local media reports, the bag was allegedly given to the First Lady in September 2022.
Although the video does not directly show Kim accepting the gift, the Korea Herald wrote that the president’s office confirmed the receipt of the bag and said it was “used and kept as government property.”
A recent poll found that 69% of the nation’s voters expect an explanation from the president about his wife’s actions, and a preliminary poll found that 53% of respondents considered her behavior inappropriate. .
Political intrigue
South Korean political analysts are seriously calling the Kim Keon-hee bag scandal a “bombshell,” which exploded just three months before South Korea’s parliamentary elections. The opposition Democratic Party has taken advantage of the scandal against President Yoon Seok-yol and his People Power Party (PPP). “The presidential office and the ruling party cannot continue to act as if an apology will end this issue,” said its leader Hong Ik-pyo.
South Korean law prohibits government officials and their spouses from receiving gifts worth more than one million won at one time or three million won at the end of a fiscal year.
The scandal also caused a rift within the president’s party.
Yoon called on his party leader Han Dong Hoon to resign after Han said the incident “may become a matter of public concern.”
“Yes, it was a planned performance with a spy camera. But in solving the problem, we made a mistake,” the Korea Times newspaper quoted Han as saying.
Kim Kyung-yul, another PPP leader, compared the first lady to Marie Antoinette, the famous French queen known for her extravagant deeds.
Corruption in South Korea
It is worth noting that in South Korea, top state officials often get caught in corruption scandals. So the country’s former president Park Geun-hye must spend 22 years in prison for abuse of power, bribery and extortion. Former South Korean President Lee Myung-bak was sentenced to 15 years in prison on charges of corruption and other crimes. Lee Myung-bak is the fourth former South Korean president to be sentenced to prison.
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.