Anna Jiwon Park has been covering the politics at The Korea Times since the summer of 2024, when she joined the press pool for the Office of the President in Korea. Prior to that, she spent about five years reporting extensively on financial markets, regulatory authorities and the financial industry. She joined The Korea Times in 2019 after spending eight years as a broadcast journalist at Arirang TV, Korea’s leading global broadcaster, covering politics, defense and culture.
Preferential treatment allegations put DPK floor leader under fire
Kim Byung-kee, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, speaks at the party's supreme council meeting held at the National Assembly in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap
By Anna J. Park
Amid mounting calls for his resignation from both within and outside the party, Kim Byung-kee, floor leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), is expected to announce his stance on Tuesday.
According to the DPK on Sunday, Kim plans to address multiple allegations of preferential treatment in a press conference or public statement scheduled around the party’s floor leadership meeting on Tuesday.
“The floor leader has said he will present his position on Dec. 30, so there will naturally be an apology to the public,” DPK floor spokesperson Kim Hyun-jung told reporters on Sunday. “It would be best to wait and see.”
A series of allegations involving Kim and his family has dominated headlines in recent days, beginning with claims last week that he received complimentary hotel accommodations from Korean Air.
Local media reported that Kim stayed for two nights, from Nov. 22 to 24 last year, in a royal suite at Seogwipo KAL Hotel in Jeju, at an estimated cost of 1.65 million won ($1,140). At the time, Kim was serving on the National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee, which had oversight authority over approval of the Korean Air-Asiana Airlines merger, raising concerns over potential conflicts of interest.
Under South Korea’s anti-graft law, public officials are prohibited from accepting gifts worth more than 1 million won, regardless of whether they are directly related to official duties. On Friday, a civic group filed a complaint against Kim with the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, accusing him of bribery and violations of the anti-graft law. Police are scheduled to question the complainants on Wednesday.
Additional allegations include a luncheon held on Sept. 5 at the Fairmont Ambassador Seoul in Yeouido with then-Coupang CEO Park Dae-jun, which reportedly cost around 700,000 won. The legal limit for per-person cost of meals provided to public officials is 50,000 won.
Further claims involve requests made to Korean Air for VIP airport escort services for Kim’s wife, daughter-in-law and grandson during a 2023 trip to Vietnam; alleged preferential medical treatment for family members at Boramae Medical Center between 2023 and 2024; and a long-standing allegation dating back to 2016 involving lobbying efforts related to his son’s employment at the National Intelligence Service.
Screenshots of Telegram chats posted on Rep. Kim Byung-kee’s Facebook page on Thursday. Screen capture from Kim’s Facebook
Kim has asserted that the recent allegations of preferential treatment raised against him stem from disclosures made by his former aides. On Thursday, Kim uploaded 12 screenshots of Telegram chat rooms to his Facebook page, claiming that the former aides were leading the allegations against him.
However, the former aides claimed that Kim’s wife had secretly installed the Telegram account of a junior aide on her phone without consent to obtain chat records, and said they had filed a criminal complaint against Kim and others with Dongjak Police Station on suspicion of violating communications privacy and information network laws.
The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) intensified calls for Kim’s resignation. PPP chief spokesperson Choi Bo-yun said in a statement Sunday that “maintaining one’s position amid a series of serious allegations of abuse of power runs directly counter to public common sense.”
Citing the range of allegations involving Kim and his family, Choi stressed that “none of these accusations can be taken lightly” and that Kim “must immediately step down as floor leader and take responsibility before the people.”