Kim Jong-cheon, Mayor of Gwacheon, "Not an Official Statement, Cause Under Investigation"
At around 11 p.m. on the 27th, the official Twitter account of Gwacheon City Hall shared the address of a petition calling for the impeachment of President Moon Jae-in. Photo by the city hall's Twitter capture.
[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] A Twitter account operated by Gwacheon City in Gyeonggi Province has sparked controversy by sharing a Blue House petition address calling for the impeachment of President Moon Jae-in. Kim Jong-cheon, mayor of Gwacheon, explained that the city’s Twitter account was hacked.
At around 11 p.m. on the 27th, the official Twitter account of Gwacheon City Hall posted a message saying, "We urge the impeachment of President Moon Jae-in. > Republic of Korea Blue House."
Clicking the link posted with the message redirected the screen to the Blue House petition titled "We urge the impeachment of President Moon Jae-in." The post was deleted an hour later.
President Moon Jae-in is speaking at the Government Seoul Office during the COVID-19 Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters meeting held on the afternoon of the 23rd. [Image source=Yonhap News]
As the fact that the city’s Twitter account shared a post urging the president’s impeachment became known and caused a stir, the Twitter account clarified, "We clearly state that the post was not created by Gwacheon City. Upon verification, there was a record of access to the city hall Twitter from the Pocheon area at 22:48 on February 27, 2020, after which the post was uploaded."
Also, Kim Jong-cheon, mayor of Gwacheon, wrote on his Facebook at around 0:32 on the 28th, "The city’s Twitter account was hacked," adding, "I believe the detailed circumstances will be revealed through a formal investigation." He further stated, "Currently, it has been confirmed that an unidentified person logged in from Pocheon City at 22:48."
He continued, "We will request an investigation from the authorities to clarify the situation." He also expressed, "We apologize for causing concern during these difficult times amid the COVID-19 crisis due to this unfortunate incident."
Furthermore, he emphasized, "The password has been changed and the post has been deleted."
The petition titled "We urge the impeachment of President Moon Jae-in," which was posted on the Blue House petition board on the 4th, had received 1,219,220 signatures as of 6:45 a.m. on the 28th.
The petitioner criticized the government’s response to COVID-19, pointing out that regarding the government’s decision to ban entry of foreigners who visited Hubei Province, China?the origin of the novel coronavirus infection?"They talked about international law, but after countries worldwide imposed entry bans, they only now came up with this measure as if playing a game of chicken." The petition is set to close on March 5.
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