‘8-term’ Yeonggwang County Council Chairman, 900 Million Won ‘Tax Delinquency’ Controversy

Accidents Causing Death, Retaliatory Crimes, and Other Past Offenses Treated as Juvenile Mistakes

Chairman Kang: "It's Just the Past, but the Residents Know Everything and Still Elected Me"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Jeon Seong] The Yeonggwang County Council in Jeollanam-do has been embroiled in a belated controversy over qualifications after it was revealed that current Chairman Kang Pil-gu has a large amount of unpaid taxes ahead of the second half chairman election.

Moreover, it has come to light that he had a serious criminal record in his youth, which is expected to continue fueling the controversy.

According to the National Tax Service’s list of high-amount and habitual tax delinquents disclosed on the 22nd, Chairman Kang is currently registered as a ‘high-amount tax delinquent.’

This is due to two cases of capital gains tax and others, totaling 902 million won, with a due date of September 30, 2012.

This is the highest cumulative tax delinquency amount among basic council members nationwide and the sixth largest amount of unpaid taxes in the Yeonggwang area.

Chairman Kang has been serving as a council member for 30 years, from the first Yeonggwang County Council to the current 8th term, and is regarded as a prominent figure in the region.

Furthermore, he holds the position of chairman of the National Association of City, County, and District Council Chairpersons, a role that requires exemplary conduct, yet he has neglected the basic constitutional duty of taxpayers as stipulated by the Constitution.

Regarding this constitutional obligation, President Moon Jae-in emphasized on June 20 last year at the 4th Anti-Corruption Council held at the Blue House, stating, “The ‘duty to pay taxes’ is a constitutional obligation that citizens must fulfill in exchange for enjoying rights,” and urged, “I hope the National Tax Service and related agencies will use all possible means to track down hidden assets of high-amount habitual tax delinquents to the end and prevent them from enjoying any privileges.”

In addition, Chairman Kang is known to have multiple relatively serious criminal records, including ‘involuntary manslaughter by assault’ and ‘retaliatory crime.’

However, Chairman Kang appears largely unconcerned, claiming these incidents occurred during his childhood.

Chairman Kang said, “The tax delinquency happened when I built a lodging business in 1998 but immediately went bankrupt due to the IMF crisis. It occurred during the process of transferring the lodging business with a friend’s help. Strictly speaking, it’s not my tax, but it’s under my name, so I am working with a tax accountant to find a solution as a public official. I have resolved all local taxes.”

He added, “The involuntary manslaughter by assault happened when I was an immature 18 or 19-year-old. You know the saying ‘the flesh got involved.’ We had a fight, I hit once, and an accident happened,” downplaying the incident.

He continued, “The retaliatory crime is not true. Around the third election, I had to go to Seoul and met a younger acquaintance. We had a verbal fight and I hit him a few times, but it was turned into a retaliatory crime because of past issues. At that time, I was ‘elected while in prison,’ but I think the county residents knew this and chose me because they didn’t see it as a big problem.”

Regarding Chairman Kang’s reasoning, a county resident who requested anonymity said, “Kang Pil-gu, who has been elected eight times, is indeed a prominent figure in the region, but considering the rural area with only a few thousand voters and various connections, it might be understandable,” adding, “However, the problem lies not only with the voters who elected a person with not just one or two serious criminal records but also a high-amount tax delinquent, but also with the council members who have elected him chairman three times.”

Meanwhile, Chairman Kang was elected in the 7th nationwide simultaneous local elections held in 2018 as a candidate from the Democratic Party of Korea and made national headlines by tying with independent council member Lee Jae-gap of Andong City Council in Gyeongsangbuk-do for eight terms. Subsequently, he was elected as the chairman of the Jeollanam-do City and County Council Chairpersons Association in the first half of the 8th term and chairman of the National Association of City, County, and District Council Chairpersons and has been active in these roles.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.