Busan Mayor's Key Points at Opening Ceremony Made into a Banner
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The phrase ‘Kkwe·Kki·Kkang·Kkol·Kkeun’ hung above the Daeyeon Tunnel on the Busan Urban Expressway sparked public outrage and was removed just three days after installation.
The phrase 'Ggoekkikkangkkeun' appeared above the Daeyeon Tunnel on the Busan Urban Expressway, drawing public criticism. [Photo by Online Community]
The Busan Facilities Corporation announced on the evening of the 23rd that it had removed the phrase ‘Kkwe·Kki·Kkang·Kkol·Kkeun’ displayed above the entrance of the Daeyeon Tunnel on the Busan Urban Expressway. The phrase was part of a project initiated by the Busan Facilities Corporation as its first effort to improve public design in the city and was installed on the 21st.
‘Kkwe·Kki·Kkang·Kkol·Kkeun’ refers to virtues mentioned by Busan Mayor Park Hyung-jun at the city’s New Year ceremony in January as qualities public officials should possess. At the time, Mayor Park emphasized, “To establish our identity as entities with public goodwill, we need Kkwe (wisdom), Kki (energy and talent), Kkang (courage), Kkol (design), and Kkeun (networking).”
However, unaware of this context, citizens reacted with confusion and frustration at the appearance of the “meaningless sign.” Criticism poured in, including comments such as, “Why spend budget to put up something that only Busan city officials would understand above a tunnel?” “It causes accidents,” “It’s a sycophantic ode by the Busan Facilities Corporation,” and “It’s an eyesore.” The corporation stated that the phrase was installed for the public to resonate with its meaning, but public sentiment remained cold.
The Busan branch of the Democratic Party of Korea issued a statement that day, saying, “A Busan city-affiliated agency is engaging in absurd acts to show excessive loyalty to the mayor, drawing criticism and ridicule,” and criticized, “Is the corporation sane to install such baseless and incomprehensible words at the tunnel entrance just because the mayor said so?” They questioned, “If drivers at the busy tunnel entrance get into accidents while staring at these mysterious characters they don’t understand, who will take responsibility?”
They emphasized, “An investigation must be conducted to determine whether there were any objections within the corporation during the project’s progress, or if dissenting opinions were ignored to curry favor with the mayor and the project was forced through,” and added, “The corporation’s chairman must be held strictly accountable, and Mayor Park should apologize to the citizens.”
As the controversy continued, Mayor Park issued a statement saying, “It is inappropriate to install such (Kkwe·Kki·Kkang·Kkol·Kkeun) phrases above a highway tunnel where safety is paramount,” and added, “It is regrettable that I was not informed in advance and could not prevent it, but I have instructed the responsible department to correct the issue immediately.”
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