[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] A public official in Seoul has sparked controversy after posting a false obituary claiming his father had passed away on the public officials' bulletin board and collecting condolence money from colleagues. It was revealed that the official had deceived others by reporting his uncle's death as his father's.
According to an MBC report on the 16th, Mr. Kim, a public official in his 50s, personally posted the news of his father's death on the Seoul Songpa-gu Public Officials' Union website at the end of last month. Employees reportedly contributed condolence money, and some even traveled all the way to Buyeo, Chungnam, to pay their respects in person.
However, after Mr. Kim's supposed father's death, posts criticizing him continued to appear on the website. It was revealed that he had misrepresented his uncle's death as his father's.
In particular, Mr. Kim took five days off, excluding the two weekend days, under the bereavement leave policy for a father's death. Additionally, although he was not a union member, he posted the obituary on a website accessible only to union members, which drew criticism from his colleagues.
An employee at Songpa-gu Office criticized, "If it is an uncle's death, employees do not usually contribute condolence money. Even the employees say they feel ashamed about this incident."
As the controversy grew, the district office immediately launched an audit, and Mr. Kim reportedly underwent two investigations.
However, in an interview with MBC, Mr. Kim explained that he "considered his uncle as a father."
Mr. Kim said, "Since I lost my father early, I regarded my uncle as my father and supported all living expenses. I personally handled all the funeral arrangements, so I never thought of him as just my uncle."
Meanwhile, Songpa-gu Office plans to hold a disciplinary committee meeting once all details, including the amount of condolence money, are fully investigated.
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