'Controversy over "Paid Local District Courses," Gominjeong Says "Start Delayed Due to Heavy Rain"'

Gominjeong, Member of the Democratic Party of Korea / Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Yeon-ju] Ko Min-jung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, announced on the 3rd that she will temporarily postpone the paid lectures in her constituency, which had caused controversy, due to heavy rain.

On the same day, Ko posted on her Facebook, "The damage from the heavy rain is spreading," and stated, "The 'Go(高)Camp Online Opening Ceremony' and 'Go(高)Class' scheduled for this week have been unavoidably postponed temporarily."

The GoCamp online opening ceremony was originally scheduled for the 4th, and GoClass was set to start on the 5th. Ko added, "We will announce the rescheduled dates later," and "Please be especially careful about safety accidents and rain damage."

Democratic Party lawmaker Go Min-jung announced on her Facebook on the 3rd that the paid lectures in her constituency have been temporarily postponed. Photo by Go Min-jung

Earlier, Ko faced controversy for directly holding paid lectures in her constituency as a sitting member of the National Assembly and for appointing her husband, poet Jo Ki-young, as an instructor.

Due to election laws affecting free special lectures, the tuition fees were set at 200,000 KRW for 10 sessions and 25,000 KRW for one session. In this process, Ko's husband took charge of the last 10th lecture, raising suspicions of preferential treatment.

As the controversy spread, Ko's side explained that they had obtained prior approval from the Election Commission and that the lecture fees were set according to the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act (Kim Young-ran Act).

Later, Ko stated, "Jo Ki-young, who took the role of instructor, is a 'poet' before being my husband. Nevertheless, if there are people who feel uncomfortable, I will exclude him from the lecturers," but also said, "Among more than 200 comments on my Facebook, about 99% of people requested to continue," thus announcing Jo Ki-young's lecture.

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