Kim Eo-jun Defends Hwang Gyo-ik's Appointment... "Mr. Hwang Is Not a Supporter of Lee Jae-myung"

Broadcaster Kim Eo-jun defended the appointment of food columnist Hwang Kyo-ik as the president of the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization on TBS Radio's "Kim Eo-jun's News Factory," stating, "Mr. Hwang is not a supporter of Lee Jae-myung." Photo by YouTube 'TBS Citizen's Broadcasting' capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] Broadcaster Kim Eo-jun stated, in response to criticism from some quarters that Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung's appointment of food columnist Hwang Kyo-ik as president of the Gyeonggi Tourism Corporation was a "favor appointment," that "Mr. Hwang is not a supporter of Lee Jae-myung."

On the 17th, Kim said on his TBS radio program "Kim Eo-jun's News Factory," which he hosts, "Regarding Mr. Hwang Kyo-ik, he has been a long-time guest on 'News Factory' and has a special relationship with us, so I can't talk at length but will say a few words," adding, "From my perspective, the mistaken point is that Mr. Hwang is not what you would call a supporter of Lee Jae-myung. He publicly supported Moon Jae-in in the last presidential election."

He continued, "If anything, it would be more accurate to call it a 'favor appointment' from the Moon Jae-in administration. Connecting it to Lee Jae-myung's favor appointment when he is not a supporter is an error," and added, "It seems to be because of his remark about 'understanding the insults toward the governor's sister-in-law,' but that was four years ago. If it was to be a favor, it should have been done then."

Regarding the controversy over Hwang's 'expertise,' Kim said, "There can be various opinions about qualifications, but for several years, Mr. Hwang has been the chairman of the Busan Food Film Festa organizing committee. It combined local food and film and was a huge success," adding, "At that time, the mayor of Busan was Seo Byung-soo, a member of the People Power Party. Yet no one calls Mr. Hwang a favor appointment of Seo Byung-soo," criticizing the 'favor appointment' controversy surrounding Hwang.

He then said, "Since it is an election year, if there appears to be a gap, people attack, but there will be a hearing, so I will talk about it again then," and concluded his remarks.

Meanwhile, Hwang previously made a statement saying, "Let's understand Lee Jae-myung" regarding the insults toward the governor's sister-in-law. Some politicians criticized Hwang as a 'favor appointment' of Governor Lee. In response, on the 17th, Hwang posted on his Facebook, "I am not a supporter of Lee Jae-myung. There is no reason for me to receive favors from Lee Jae-myung in Gyeonggi Province," dismissing the controversy.

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