Park Jin-young Addresses Government Allowance Controversy, Says He Wants to Return Payments

The singer and producer reportedly received ₩2 million a month in role-related expenses, prompting questions about his earlier no-salary statement.

Park Jin-young has addressed questions about payments connected to his government role after previously saying he did not receive a salary.

According to Sports Kyunghyang’s October 6 report, Park said during an appearance on SBS Radio’s Kim Tae-hyun’s Political Show that he had not known he would receive the payments and would prefer to return them.

His comments came a day before his scheduled appearance as a witness at the National Assembly’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee audit.

Why his “unpaid” role drew scrutiny

Park serves as co-chair of a presidential committee on popular culture exchange. During an August appearance on MBC’s entertainment program The Manager, he described the position as part-time and said he did not receive an annual salary.

The controversy developed after records reportedly showed that he had received approximately ₩2 million a month in allowances for carrying out the role.

Sports Kyunghyang reported that documents obtained by People Power Party lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin’s office showed payments beginning in November 2025, with the cumulative amount exceeding ₩20 million.

Two different expense categories

A key detail in the report is the distinction between the monthly allowance and a separate budget for official business expenses.

The monthly payments were reportedly classified as 직책수행경비, an allowance associated with performing the duties of a position. A separate card for 업무추진비, or official business expenses, was also reportedly provided and used.

However, the radio exchange referred to the monthly payments as business expenses. Park said declining those expenses could place pressure on whoever succeeds him.

That difference matters because the interview’s terminology did not precisely match the category identified in the reported budget records. The debate therefore concerns what the payments covered and how they fit with his earlier statement that he received no salary.

Park defends public-private cooperation

During the interview, Park also argued that cooperation between government and private-sector professionals should expand across industries.

He presented his decision to continue both government duties and company work as part of that broader approach, saying such arrangements should provide a positive example of public-private collaboration.

Culture Minister Choi Hwi-young had previously defended the arrangement in an October 1 social media post, according to the report. Choi said Park received no salary and argued that it was unreasonable to expect him to cover even the minimum expenses needed to perform his duties.

Park’s stated wish to return the payments does not establish that a repayment has taken place. His scheduled October 7 parliamentary appearance may provide further clarification about the allowance and his responsibilities.