"Mayor, We Love You": Female Staff in Hanbok Join Embarrassing Flattery Contest

Controversy Over Excessive Displays of Loyalty Toward Local Government Heads
"We're Not Supposed to Work for the Mayor," Employees Voice Frustration

Controversy has recently erupted over an excessive display of loyalty toward a local government head at a year-end closing ceremony for a local government office. Instead of recognizing the hard work of employees as the year concluded, some public officials were found to have competitively prepared performances that excessively praised the head of the local government. This has sparked criticism of the deeply rooted culture of excessive protocol and hierarchical organizational culture within the public sector.

At the year-end closing ceremony held last year at Namwon City Hall in Jeonbuk, Mayor Kyung-Sik Choi of Namwon is receiving a candy necklace from an employee. Photo by MBC News YouTube channel capture

According to a recent MBC report, at the end of last year, various departments at Namwon City Hall in Jeonbuk held competing events in honor of Mayor Kyung-Sik Choi. In one department, when the mayor visited, employees who had been hiding behind desk partitions stood up one by one holding pieces of paper. When the papers were put together, they formed the message, "Happy New Year!" Mayor Choi responded with laughter, saying, "That's unusual, very unusual."

Certificates and Necklaces... Year-End Ceremony Turns into Flattery Competition

In another department, the department head led a chant praising the mayor's courage, competence, and leadership, and presented him with a certificate titled "A Grateful Award." The certificate read, "We present this certificate to our top leader, Mayor Kyung-Sik Choi, in gratitude and respect for making Namwon a better place to live through your constant thought and action." In yet another department, a female employee dressed in a traditional hanbok placed what appeared to be a handmade necklace around the mayor's neck.

This came to light after Mayor Choi posted a video of the event on his social media account to boast about it. As the controversy grew, he deleted the post, and Namwon City Hall explained, "The appreciation event was voluntarily prepared by the employees."

Recurring Controversy Over Excessive Protocol

Similar controversies have arisen in Jeonju as well. Ahead of last year's year-end closing ceremony, each department reportedly received requests for cooperation, such as "Please greet the mayor at the building entrance" and "Please welcome the mayor in the lobby." In response, some public officials criticized the requests, saying, "We can't resist because it affects our performance evaluations," "This is invisible power harassment," "Public officials are not supposed to work for the mayor," and "We don't even do this for our parents."

This is not the first time that excessive protocol toward local government heads by public officials has become controversial. In November last year, in Buk-gu, Gwangju, female senior officials participated in a stage performance with the district mayor during the recording of KBS's "National Singing Contest," which drew public criticism. Some of these officials were found to have listed false reasons for their business trips, which led to an internal audit and disciplinary actions such as warnings and cautions. The Buk-gu District Office explained at the time, "There was no instruction or intervention from the district mayor," and "It was confirmed that the employees acted voluntarily."