Gimpo FC Embezzlement Scandal Shocks City... Mayor Lee Gihyung Orders Comprehensive Special Audit of Affiliated Agencies

Mayor Lee Gihyung Holds Emergency Press Conference
Full-Scale Special Audit Launched for Affiliated Organizations
Commitment to Integrity, Responsible, and Transparent Governance
"A Serious Act of Corruption That Undermined Public Trust"

"Restoring the trust of citizens and establishing discipline among public officials are duties of myself and the current 9th popularly elected administration, which is responsible for the present city governance."

Lee Gihyung, mayor of Gimpo, has bowed his head and begun a full-scale reform of all municipally affiliated public enterprises and funded or invested agencies, following an embezzlement scandal involving approximately 5.8 billion won in public funds at Gimpo FC.

Mayor Lee Gihyung is holding an emergency press conference at Gimpo City Hall on the 14th. Provided by Gimpo City

On July 14, Mayor Lee held an urgent press conference at Gimpo City Hall and stated, "I will not consider this incident as the deviation of a specific agency, but use it as an opportunity to innovate all public institutions in Gimpo City," announcing plans for a thorough special audit.

After confirming that an employee of Gimpo FC had embezzled more than 5.8 billion won of public funds, Gimpo City decided to examine the accounting and asset management practices of all local public enterprises and funded or invested agencies, including Gimpo FC itself.

The audit will cover every area in which citizens' taxes are used, such as accounting and cash management, contract work, management of government subsidies, corporate card usage, and internal control systems.

After verifying the facts on July 13, Gimpo FC immediately reported the incident to the police and informed Gimpo City of the situation.

On this day, Mayor Lee expressed his deep regret to citizens, stating, "I deeply regret that a serious act of corruption has occurred at a public institution where citizens' taxes are invested," and apologized to the public.

He further emphasized, "While this incident involved wrongdoing that occurred during the 8th popularly elected administration and was uncovered just after the start of the 9th administration, the most critical responsibility for me, as head of city governance, is to ensure citizens can once again trust and have confidence in public institutions."

Mayor Lee also pledged to recover the embezzled funds and hold those responsible accountable.

He stated, "If improper conduct or supervisory neglect is found, those responsible will be held strictly accountable regardless of their position or rank. We will thoroughly investigate and pursue the recovery of the embezzled public funds to the end, and impose both civil and criminal liability on all involved."

Gimpo City has announced that it will use the results of this special audit to bring systemic improvement to the operation of its public institutions.

Mayor Lee Ki-hyung holds an emergency press conference at Gimpo City Hall on the 14th. Photo provided by Gimpo City

Specific initiatives include improving organizational structures that concentrate authority in the hands of a few individuals, establishing dual and triple accounting verification systems, expanding regular audits with the participation of outside experts, strengthening protections for internal whistleblowers, and disclosing audit results to the public.

Mayor Lee Gihyung stated, "The 9th administration of Gimpo City will build a culture of integrity, responsible governance, and transparent administration together with our citizens. All public officials of Gimpo City will focus their full efforts on fundamental innovation and reform to restore citizens' confidence in public institutions. We will thoroughly get to the bottom of this incident and ensure those responsible are held fully accountable."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.