Some Senior Officials Request Support for Specific Candidate... Also Slander Other Candidates
[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Jun-kyung] The Jeonnam Office of Education is in turmoil ahead of the Jeonnam Superintendent of Education election, held simultaneously with the June 1 nationwide local elections.
Voices are rising that some employees have crossed the line by blatantly requesting support for specific candidates, resulting in election interference by authorities.
According to the Jeonnam education community on the 28th, some staff members belonging to the Jeonnam Office of Education frequently make phone calls to other staff, openly asking them to support certain candidates, which happens repeatedly.
Regarding this, Kim Cheon-hong, Deputy Superintendent of Education (Acting Superintendent), stated that such incidents would never happen and that employees have been repeatedly educated on election neutrality. However, completely different voices are emerging from the frontline educational sites.
Under the current Public Official Election Act, public officials and others required to maintain political neutrality are prohibited from exerting undue influence on elections by using their duties or positions, or engaging in acts that affect elections.
Public officials must not support or oppose specific party candidates, nor post content that influences elections. Additionally, sharing election-related posts or repeatedly clicking supportive comments or likes is also prohibited.
However, recently, even key executives of the Office of Education have been involved, urging employees to campaign, putting lower-ranked staff in awkward positions.
One executive-level employee reportedly called another staff member directly, requesting support for a specific candidate while disparaging the opposing candidate.
Employees have many complaints about this excessive election interference, but they cannot openly express them. There is a hush-hush atmosphere due to fears of retaliation from higher-ups if issues are raised.
An employee A, who requested anonymity, said, “I have worked at the headquarters for a long time, but I have never seen employees openly campaigning like this election,” and added, “In fact, if you stay silent, you feel scrutinized.”
Another school principal pointed out, “Recently, I received a direct call from A in the Office of Education’s Secretariat asking for help for a specific candidate,” and noted, “Due to the close-knit senior-junior relationships among staff, they cannot openly speak out, but there is much dissatisfaction among employees about the blatant election campaigning.”
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