Seoul Mayor Oh Se Hoon has ordered a thorough inspection of social service workers after WINNER’s Song Mino was accused of failing to report for mandatory military service.
In a post shared on his Facebook account, Oh explained that the uproar over Mino’s presence was part of his duties as mayor to the city’s institutions to ensure that social workers fulfill their duties.
“While I am confident that the majority of staff will perform their duties in their assigned positions, I also believe we must prevent the negligence of a minority from triggering a sense of discontent,” Oh wrote.
The mayor added that the city “will take firm action in accordance with the results of its investigation and recommend improvements in the social services system to the Military Manpower Administration.”
The mayor’s crackdown on attendance began with news that WINNER’s Mino had not only taken sick leave on his last day of military service, but also allegedly manipulated his attendance sheet with the help of a center worker community assigned to him.
Mino was immediately investigated by the Military Manpower Administration last Tuesday and was discharged from duty the following week.
The idol’s agency YG Entertainment denied the rumors, claiming that he had taken sick leave to receive medical treatment, which was confirmed by a community center employee who testified that the idol withstood his service despite being physically incapable of doing so.
Under Korean law, all able-bodied adult men must undergo at least 18 months of compulsory military service.
Those who fail the physical qualification exam for active duty but do not have debilitating health conditions, like Mino, can fulfill their obligations as a social services worker and are assigned alternative 21-month assignments in public institutions.