Badminton Association Attempts General Meeting of ‘No Confidence in Executives’ Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Requests Suspension of the Meeting
Badminton Association Attempts General Meeting of ‘No Confidence in Executives’ Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Requests Suspension of the Meeting
Blog Article
As a movement of 'no confidence' against executives who voiced opposition to Chairman Kim Taek-gyu arose within the Korea Badminton Association, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism stepped in to stop it.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced, "We have requested that the Badminton Association's extraordinary general meeting of delegates scheduled for the 11th be suspended due to violations of the articles of association and the national audit."
This is a measure taken in response to the Badminton Association recently convening a temporary general meeting of delegates on the 11th with the agenda of a ‘vote of no confidence in executives.’
The Badminton Association executives who were named as candidates for a vote of no confidence in the extraordinary general meeting agenda are five vice-presidents and Director Cha Yun-sook, who are known as the so-called 'opposition faction' of Chairman Kim Taek-gyu.
Those who requested the general meeting claim that some vice-chairmen issued a statement calling for Chairman Kim Taek-gyu's resignation in order to protect vested interests and caused internal division by having directors join in, and that the dismissal of the executives in question was for the purpose of "normalizing the association."
In relation to this, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism pointed out that the convocation of this general meeting did not meet the requirements set forth in the association's articles of association.
An extraordinary general meeting of delegates was convened based on Article 8, Paragraph 2, Item 3 of the Badminton Association's Articles of Incorporation, which stipulates that "when more than one-third of the registered delegates request a convocation by stating the purpose of the meeting," but the agenda item this time, regarding the vote of no confidence (dismissal) of some executives, is that "it is proposed with the approval of a majority of the registered delegates," according to Article 11, Paragraph 3 of the Articles of Incorporation.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also reported that the fact that a related point was raised during the National Assembly Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee's state audit held that day was also a factor in demanding the suspension of the general meeting.
During the National Assembly audit on that day, Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Min Hyung-bae claimed that the Badminton Association had called the general meeting to disadvantage Director Cha Yoon-sook 추천 and others who appeared as witnesses and made statements during the current affairs inquiry on the 24th of last month, and that protective measures were necessary.
During the current issue inquiry, Director Cha said, "I reported the 'Payback' controversy to the Sports Fair Play Commission and made inquiries, but I never received a response. I am ashamed that we are unable to protect athletes and meet the public's expectations due to backward administration," and made harsh remarks in front of Chairman Kim Taek-gyu.
Korean badminton is experiencing aftershocks, including an audit by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, following the 'resolute remarks' made by Ahn Se-young, who won the gold medal in the women's singles at the 2024 Paris Olympics, criticizing the association and the overall management of the national team. Meanwhile, voices within the association are calling for Chairman Kim Taek-gyu to resign and refuting these calls.