"The Presidential Office Must Be the President's 'Anti-fan,'" Promotional Poster Used a Picture Taken at the Site of a Tragic Disaster

A picture that the Office of the President posted on social media on August 10. It is a promotional poster showing a picture of President Yoon Suk-yeol looking around the site where a family met a tragic death in Sillim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul on August 9. Captured from the Office of the President’s Facebook account

Controversy refuses to die down concerning President Yoon Suk-yeol’s response to the downpour that pounded central South Korea since August 8. The Office of the President created a promotional poster and “card news” using pictures taken at the site where a family of three died after their house was flooded with rainwater drawing attacks. As controversy intensified, the presidential office deleted the problematic posts on August 10.

President Yoon oversaw the nation’s response to the downpour on the first night of the heavy rains from his home in Seocho-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul. This triggered criticism that the president was not visible during the disastrous downpour. The Office of the President explained that the president had already returned home from the office and that he could not go out due to security and protocol issues. Kang Seung-kyoo, senior presidential secretary for civil society sat for a radio interview with KBS this day and asked, “Should the president remain at work instead of going home, because it’s raining?” The Office of the President also said, “We will make the same decision in the future.”

President Yoon Suk-yeol visits an area in Sillim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul, which suffered flood damages. Yonhap News

Gim Ji-eun (27), a university student said, “Even if the instructions he gives at home and on site are the same, there is a significant difference in terms of how much trust the president can give the people and how much of our anxiety he can resolve,” and argued, “The fact that the president is on the field sends out a strong message to the people.” Yi (63), a freelancer said, “Even if it’s just an obvious image of him wearing that yellow jacket, it is necessary.”

People also criticized the messages released by the presidential office. Oh (31), an office worker said, “I can understand the explanation that when the president goes out to lead on site, it could interfere with the response due to security and protocol issues,” but added, “The answer that they would have to make the same decision in the future was unnecessary.”

The Office of the President also came under attack for using a picture of President Yoon visiting the site of a tragic accident that killed a family of three in their semi-basement apartment in Sillim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul on August 9 in a promotional poster. Gim (43), a worker said, “The image of the president looking around the site where citizens died a tragic death just the day before was indeed a problem, but the fact that they used that picture on a poster is appalling.” He claimed, “The president’s public relations office is practically the his ‘anti-fan.’” Gim Seok-min (34) said, “When it comes to the latest issue, I feel rage surging from the bottom of my heart.”

This day, a representative of the presidential office met with the press and said, “There were many people who felt uncomfortable, because it was the site of a tragic disaster,” and added, “I think some consideration was lacking. We apologize and will contact the team in charge and have them delete the post.” The “card news” in question was then deleted from the Office of the President’s website and Facebook account.

The president leading the nation from his home was not irrelevant with the delayed construction of the official presidential residence in Yongsan. Initially, the Office of the President claimed that the construction would be completed in a month, but they have postponed the move into the official residence. The presidential office explained that construction was delayed due to the monsoon saying, “As anyone who has repaired their home may know, things are getting delayed little by little.” Gim Ji-eun said, “As a citizen, we did not receive a sufficient explanation as to why the move to the official residence was postponed.”

Experts noted the failure in managing President Yoon’s messages to the nation as the main problem. Jang Seung-jin, a professor of political science and international relations at Kookmin University said, “It is an issue that has kept repeating since the launch of the new government,” and argued, “They keep being defensive in their response rather than explain the parts that people point out as problems, and this is a serious issue.” Park Won-ho, a professor of political science and international relations at Seoul National University said, “The president is a symbolic figure, and the people want to see the president in his role when a problem occurs in the country,” and added, “In a crisis situation, he has the duty to provide people with a sense of security.”