"The Only Luxury Item Was the 'Hangul Jacket' Worn During the French State Visit... Donated to the National Hangeul Museum"
First Lady Kim Jung-sook is greeting Brigitte Macron, the wife of President Emmanuel Macron, near the Louvre Museum in Paris, France, in October 2018. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] As the Blue House appealed a court ruling ordering the disclosure of protocol expenses related to First Lady Kim Jung-sook, the spouse of President Moon Jae-in, sparking a controversy over her clothing expenses, broadcaster Kim Eo-jun criticized it as a "testing the waters for Nondureong Season 2."
On the 28th, Kim said on his TBS radio show "Kim Eo-jun's News Factory," which he hosts, "There are overflowing claims on YouTube and elsewhere that one of the brooches worn by the First Lady costs over 200 million won," adding, "This is fake news. That brooch is not an expensive item."
Previously, Shin Pyeong, a lawyer who was active in Moon Jae-in's campaign during the 19th presidential election but declared support for President-elect Yoon Seok-youl in the 20th presidential election, posted on his Facebook on the 26th urging the disclosure of the First Lady's protocol expenses. He raised suspicions, saying, "It is said that the First Lady used the Blue House's special activity funds to indulge in excessive luxury throughout her husband's term," and "The colorful clothing expenses may seem trivial, but the costs of accessories like brooches and handbags are said to be beyond imagination." This post has since been deleted.
In response, Kim explained, "As far as I know, the only luxury item the First Lady wore during protocol events was the 'Hangul design jacket' by Karl Lagerfeld, the chief designer of Chanel, which was coordinated between the French side and the Blue House protocol team during the state visit to France in October 2018." He added, "This jacket was donated to the National Hangeul Museum and is currently on display at the departure hall on the third floor of Incheon Airport."
Furthermore, Kim raised his voice, saying, "Why is this kind of news suddenly flooding in? It's like testing the waters for Nondureong Watch Season 2." The 'Nondureong Watch Incident' refers to a case in May 2009 when some media outlets reported that former President Roh Moo-hyun testified that he threw away a luxury watch, allegedly received as a bribe from Park Yeon-cha, chairman of Taekwang Industrial, into a ditch. At the time, former President Roh strongly denied the claim, stating it was untrue, but the controversy spread widely, and he took his own life on May 23, just ten days after the reports.
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