Presidential office designates first lady’s luxury gift as presidential record

Mrs. Kim Keon-hee. YouTube Captured Screen

The presidential office designated the luxury bag that first lady Kim Keon-hee received as a presidential record. This means that the bag, which Kim secretly received at the Covana Contents office, will be considered on par with gifts from foreign leaders. Lee Chul-kyu, a key member of the ruling People’s Power Party (PPP)’s pro-Yoon Suk-yeol faction, said on January 22 that "returning items belonging to the national treasury is embezzlement of national funds." His absurd logic is that the luxury bag that Kim received is a "national property," and therefore, if it is returned, it will be "embezzlement." The presidential office and PPP’s lawmaker Lee's sophistry in support of the first lady is unbelievable. Do they think the people will understand if they just gloss it over? The inability to call a bribe a bribe and making efforts to cover up Kim's wrongdoings are making the situation worse.

Regarding the suspicion of Kim receiving a luxury bag, the presidential office told reporters on January 19, "Gifts received by the president and his wife are not received by them in person, but are attributed to the state according to related regulations." The idea is that the luxury bag Kim received was a gift for the president and was handled in accordance with the relevant regulations. The only regulation on presidential gifts is The Presidential Records Act. According to the act, presidential gifts that go to the national treasury must be related to the performance of official duties and have “national preservation value.” As is well known, however, Kim only received the luxury bag privately, so the bag cannot be considered to have national preservation value.

If the president and his spouse receive gifts during official or unofficial meetings, whatever they are, they need to be verified by the secretary's office in charge, such as the Presidential Security Service. In particular, if the gift was worth more than 3 million won, it should be investigated by the Office of the Secretary of Public Service Discipline, when it was received, from whom, and for what reason. It should be revealed whether the presidential office has gone through such a procedure properly. It is also important when the bag in question belongs to the national treasury. Kim received the bag from the Korean-American pastor on September 13, 2022, and the incident was disclosed by the online media outlet Voice of Seoul on November 27 last year. If the attribution process took place after the incident was publicized, it is hard to say that Kim voluntarily reported it.

The bag Kim received is said to be stored in the gift warehouse at the presidential office building in Yongsan, Seoul. The case has changed qualitatively as the bag has been defined as a presidential record. A strict investigation is needed not only for the current first lady to meet civilians alone and receive an expensive bag, but also for those who have intervened or exercised influence in the process of designating the bag as a presidential record.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.