Kim Jaewon: "The official letter sent by the Presidential Office to MBC seemed like manipulation"

Pointing out the part where 'Park Sung-je MBC President' is listed as the recipient
"Are you sending a text... It should be 'CEO of Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation'"

Former Supreme Council Member of the People Power Party, Kim Jae-won. / Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Joo-hee] Former People Power Party Supreme Council member Kim Jae-won criticized the Presidential Office's official letter sent to MBC regarding the controversy over President Yoon Seok-yeol's 'private remarks,' saying, "When I first saw it, I thought it was fabricated," and added, "The staff at the Presidential Office have become too complacent."

On the 29th, on TBS Radio's 'Kim Eo-jun's News Factory,' former Supreme Council member Kim pointed out the inadequacy of the official letter sent by the Presidential Office on the 26th during the President's overseas trip, addressed to Park Sung-je, President of MBC, titled 'Inquiry Regarding Reports During the Overseas Visit.' The letter questioned MBC about the circumstances under which they added subtitles specifying the content of President Yoon's remarks made during his visit to New York, USA.

Kim criticized, "When sending an official letter, the recipient should be addressed by their official title, such as 'CEO of Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation,'" and added, "But the Presidential Office addressed it to 'Park Sung-je, MBC President.' This is not like sending a text message; would you address an official letter to the Chief of Staff of the Presidential Office as 'Yong-Wa-dae (Yongsan + Cheongwadae) so-and-so Chief'?" He also asked the host, "Isn't the official letter sent by the Presidential Office fabricated?"

Kim emphasized, "I passed the civil service exam and worked as an administrative officer for seven years, and the first thing you learn is drafting (起案, preparing a document draft)," adding, "The members of the Presidential Office really need to work hard. They need to get their act together." However, regarding MBC's report, he pointed out, "Not only did MBC lead the controversy, but they also played a major role in distorting the situation," and criticized, "It is problematic to report recklessly when the content of the remarks is unclear."

Regarding criticism that "there has been no apology or expression of regret from President Yoon about this controversy," Kim said, "The President must be very cautious about apologizing," and explained, "The President remembers that he never made such remarks, and since the actual content (of the remarks) is unclear when listening to the audio, apologizing would mean acknowledging the entire situation led by political opponents. That would eliminate any chance to clarify the facts."

He then referred to the political scandal, saying, "In the case of former President Park Geun-hye, there was an atmosphere that everything would end if she apologized initially, but after the second and third apologies, even more unfortunate events occurred," and added, "Unless everything ends with a single apology, I don't think this situation will be resolved that way."