After Two Hours of Presidential Impeachment… Controversy Over Gimhae City Councilors Visiting Golf Course
Just two hours after the Constitutional Court announced the impeachment of former President Yoon Seok-yeol, it was revealed that councilors from a local council in Gyeongnam visited a golf course.
Considering that the nation was in a state of emergency at the time, there are criticisms that public officials have exceeded the limits of insensitivity and moral laxity.
On the 6th, Segye Ilbo reported that at around 1:10 PM on the 4th, People Power Party councilor Kim Joo-seob from Gimhae visited a golf course in Uiryeong, Gyeongnam, along with a group.
According to the report, the group included Kang Young-soo, a councilor from the Democratic Party, and civil servants from the Gimhae City Hall's civil engineering department.
Councilor Kim serves as the chair of the Urban Construction Committee in Gimhae City Council, while Councilor Kang serves on the Urban Construction Committee and the Ethics Special Committee.
On-site, it was captured that Councilor Kim was swinging a golf club while wearing golf attire and shoes. At that time, he had his face mostly covered with a hood, except for his eyes, and was seen practicing putting at a distance from the starting point. Some members of the group called out his name "Kim Joo-seob," urging him to join.
The media also confirmed that a golf cart carrying Councilor Kim and his group was seen moving to the tee shot area.
The time they arrived at the golf course was less than two hours after the Constitutional Court decided to "impeach" former President Yoon in the impeachment trial.
The schedule for the Constitutional Court's impeachment decision had been announced three days prior, starting on the 1st, through media reports, indicating that the golf meeting could have been canceled in advance, regardless of the result. As such, questions have arisen about whether it was appropriate to visit the golf course immediately after the presidential impeachment announcement.
Meanwhile, the individuals involved claimed that although they visited the golf course, they did not actually play golf.
Councilor Kim stated, "I went to the golf course because it was a reservation made a month ago for (golf) practice, but I just changed clothes at the clubhouse and returned." He added, "Since I made the reservation in my real name, you can check with the golf course whether I played or not."
He continued, "I had to go to the golf course in person because they do not allow canceling reservations over the phone, and I heard the news of the presidential impeachment while on my way to the golf course, so I didn't play and just returned."
As for Councilor Kang, the media attempted to contact him multiple times via phone and left messages, but he has not responded.
Image source: Representative photo for understanding the article / gettyimagesbank, Acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae of the Constitutional Court / News1
