'Hwang Kyo-ik on "Boeun Personnel Controversy": "If I received Boeun from Moon Jae-in Government, I did..." Explanation'

Taste columnist Hwang Kyo-ik has been confirmed on the 13th as the nominee for president of the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization, an institution under Gyeonggi Province.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] Hwang Kyo-ik, a taste columnist appointed as president of the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization, dismissed the controversy over Gyeonggi Governor Lee Jae-myung's "favoritism appointment," saying, "I am not a supporter of Lee Jae-myung. There is no reason for me to receive favoritism from Lee Jae-myung's Gyeonggi Province."

On the 17th, Hwang posted on his Facebook, recalling an incident in June 2017 when Seo Byung-soo, then mayor of Busan and a member of the People Power Party, supported him as the chairman of the Busan Food Film Festa organizing committee. He introduced how the leadership of the Liberty Korea Party (now People Power Party) reprimanded Seo by saying, "Can you promise support and take a photo with Hwang Kyo-ik, a supporter of Moon Jae-in?" He said, "As a supporter of Moon Jae-in, if I were to receive favoritism, it would be from the Moon Jae-in administration, not from Lee Jae-myung's Gyeonggi Province."

Hwang said, "The first Busan Food Film Festa was a huge success. (Because of that) Mayor Seo Byung-soo asked to meet me," adding, "He praised the success of the Busan Food Film Festa and promised that Busan City would actively support it going forward. He even took a selfie with me as a commemorative photo and posted it on his SNS."

He continued, "I heard that Mayor Seo Byung-soo faced difficulties because of this. The leadership of the Liberty Korea Party (now People Power Party) reportedly reprimanded him, saying, 'Can you promise support and take a photo with Hwang Kyo-ik, a leftist communist supporter of Moon Jae-in?'" He added, "I heard that Mayor Seo responded, 'Where is left or right in culture?'"

He then said, "Tourism is also culture. There is no left or right, no political faction in tourism culture," and added, "Although I have never worked in the tourism industry, developing local tourism products has been one of my lifelong missions. Consulting on geographical indication systems and regional joint brands has also been a long-standing part of my work."

He also rebutted criticism from some politicians who said he "lacks expertise." Hwang said, "I am greatly disappointed by Korean politicians who can only think of 'introducing good restaurants' when it comes to the food culture industry," adding, "Politicians tend to mistakenly believe they understand other fields well once they hold power. The food culture industry is much broader industrially than you think."

Regarding the "favoritism appointment" controversy, he explained, "The remark 'Let's understand Lee Jae-myung' regarding his brother-in-law's abusive language was from 2018," and added, "Lee Jae-myung has been a city mayor, but he has never made any special proposals to me. The position of president of the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization has been vacant for a long time."

Meanwhile, presidential candidates from both ruling and opposition parties criticized Governor Lee for appointing Hwang Kyo-ik as president of the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization. On the 16th, Kim Hyo-eun, spokesperson for former Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yeon's campaign, said in a statement, "Change the name of the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization to Gyeonggi Matjip (Good Restaurant) Organization. The absurd claim that introducing good restaurants is tourism expertise insults tourism professionals." On the 14th, former Jeju Governor and People Power Party presidential candidate Won Hee-ryong posted on his social media, "If someone who said they understand the brother-in-law's abusive language becomes president of the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization, then Kim Eo-jun would be fully qualified to be KBS president."

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