Yoon mulls explaining first lady’s luxury bag allegations as early as this month

President Yoon Suk Yeol is considering explaining his stance as early as this month on allegations that the first lady, Kim Keon Hee, had received a luxury bag as a gift in 2022, sources said Wednesday.

An escalating controversy over the luxury bag scandal appears to be becoming a political burden on Yoon as public sentiment has worsened ahead of the April general elections.

Yoon is weighing a plan to explain himself regarding the controversy surrounding the luxury bag allegations when he outlines his policy goal vision during an interview with a specific media outlet, according to sources.

“Now is the time for the president to give an explanation,” an official at the presidential office said, adding that a television interview may be preferred over a conventional press conference.

There is an allegation that the first lady Kim inappropriately received a luxury bag valued at around 3 million won (US$2,200) from a Korean American pastor in 2022. A liberal YouTube news channel disclosed a video, taken with a hidden camera, showing Kim accepting the Christian Dior bag.

Yoon is expected to explain what happened and seek the people’s understanding, but is also likely to emphasize that Kim is the victim of a political gambit and a criminal act of hidden camera filming.

KBS may be chosen as the platform for hosting the interview, though Yoon’s office said other options are under consideration and nothing has been conclusively decided.

The move follows a recent clash with Han Dong-hoon, the leader of the ruling People Power Party, who rejected the presidential office’s request to step down amid the luxury bag scandal.

While the Yoon-Han conflict appeared to be settling, some within the party argue that the presidential office needs to take further action to directly address the issue.

Han said while the video footage was a premeditated “hidden camera trap,” there were “aspects that the people could be worried about” and the issue should be “thought about from the people’s perspective.”