Daegu Cultural Arts Promotion Agency Faces Organizational Conflict, Personnel Abuse, and Operational Confusion... Daegu City Council Urges Active Measures from City Government

The Culture and Welfare Committee of the Daegu City Council, chaired by Park Changseok, issued a statement on the 20th in the council’s second-floor meeting room, urging the Daegu city government to take responsible action regarding the recent series of issues at the Daegu Cultural Arts Promotion Agency.

The Daegu Cultural Arts Promotion Agency, established through the integration of six institutions related to culture, arts, and tourism in Daegu, serves as the definitive control tower for the city’s cultural and arts policy. However, it is currently facing a serious crisis of public trust due to internal conflicts, operational confusion, abuse of personnel authority, and a lack of transparency in budget execution.

Members of the Culture and Welfare Committee of the Daegu City Council are urging that the Daegu city government take responsibility for the Daegu Cultural Arts Promotion Agency incident.

The Culture and Welfare Committee has consistently pointed out the seriousness of various problems within the agency through administrative audits, work reports, and on-site investigations, and has repeatedly called for stabilization and reform of the organization. Nevertheless, the city’s response has been insufficient, ultimately leading to the resignation of the agency’s director on the 18th, which was accepted on the following day, the 19th.

In its statement, the committee emphasized that this incident at the Cultural Arts Promotion Agency-a core institution responsible for executing an annual budget of 100 billion KRW and serving as a public platform that supports the livelihoods and creative foundations of local artists-is not a simple internal matter. Rather, it undermines public trust in cultural and arts institutions and poses a serious obstacle to the development of culture and arts in Daegu.

The committee also expressed concern that, under the current mode of operation, the agency would no longer be able to serve as the central pillar of Daegu’s cultural and arts scene. It stressed that the city must fully explain the circumstances of the incident to citizens and artists and take steps to restore trust. Additionally, the committee stated that a thorough review of personnel, budget, and business operations is necessary, along with organizational restructuring and operational innovation that reflect the voices of the cultural and arts community.

Chairman Park Changseok stated, "The Daegu city government is responsible for the management failures and related confusion at this public institution, which is operated with taxpayers’ money." He emphasized, "Despite repeated warnings, the city failed to properly address the post-restructuring confusion, and now active measures are needed to restore the trust that has been lost."

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