"‘Work Emergency Duty for Us’ Government Employees Union Criticizes Hong Jun-pyo's Golf"

Jeonggongno Daegu Headquarters Issues Statement on the 18th
"Why Were You Made to Work Emergency Duty When You Said Weekends Are Free?"

Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo's golfing during the heavy rain last weekend has come to light, and on the 18th, the Daegu branch of the National Public Officials Labor Union (Jeongongno) claimed, "While ordering public officials to be on emergency duty, he himself went golfing."

Amid reports that Hong Joon-pyo, Mayor of Daegu, played golf during the heavy rain last weekend, on the 18th, the Daegu Regional Headquarters of the National Public Officials Labor Union (Jeongongno) criticized him, saying, "He ordered emergency duty for public officials but went to play golf himself," calling it a case of double standards.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On the same day, Jeongongno Daegu branch issued a statement titled "Public Officials on Emergency Duty, Mayor Golfing for Healing," condemning Mayor Hong for "forgetting the situation and his responsibilities to enjoy golf," and urged him to "listen to the opinions of public officials and sincerely carry out administration for the citizens."

The fact that Mayor Hong played golf during the nationwide flood damage last weekend was previously reported by the media. On the 15th, starting at 11:20 a.m., Mayor Hong played golf at Palgong Country Club located in Dohak-dong, Dong-gu, Daegu, but stopped after about an hour due to heavy rain.

Although Mayor Hong went golfing at a time when neither a heavy rain advisory nor a heavy rain warning was issued, criticism arose that going to the golf course during a period when flood damage was expected was inappropriate in itself.

On the 17th, Mayor Hong stated on his Facebook, "Is there a regulation in the public service that you can play tennis on weekends but not golf? It would be different if you were the president, but other public officials have freedom on weekends." He also emphasized, "When a heavy rain warning is in effect, the deputy mayor oversees the work, and the mayor has no assigned role," and "I have never acted against Daegu City's disaster preparedness manual."

Jeongongno Daegu branch said, "The core issue is that Mayor Hong, who is the head of Daegu City's Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, engaged in inappropriate activities in responding to the emergency," and questioned, "Did he establish a response system in an environment where real-time reports could be received during a disaster?" They added, "Daegu City will develop and its citizens will be happier when communication administration, not stubborn administration, is carried out."

After meeting with Yoon Jae-ok, the floor leader of the People Power Party, at the National Assembly, Mayor Hong told reporters, "I did not order emergency duty," "There was no situation to report in real time," and "There was nothing reported to me by the chief secretary while I was playing golf."

Meanwhile, it is reported that the People Power Party has launched a fact-finding investigation into Mayor Hong's golf controversy. Senior spokesperson Kang Min-guk said, "The party is taking this matter very seriously, and after first investigating the facts and truth, there will likely be discussions on follow-up measures." Regarding the timing of the follow-up decision, he said, "It won't take long," and "A conclusion may be reached as early as this afternoon."

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