Singer PSY issued an official statement calling the allegations of receiving sleeping pills on behalf of someone else a “clear fault” as he was being questioned by the police. While denying the allegations of proxy prescriptions, the controversy surrounding the ‘world star’ is expected to continue to resonate.
PSY (real name Park Jae-sang), the ‘world star’ who shook the globe with ‘Gangnam Style’, was quickly caught up in an unexpected ‘sleeping pill controversy’, and bowed his head in high speed, less than a day after the allegations arose. He chose to tackle the issue head-on by admitting to the ‘proxy receipt’, which is at the core of the controversy.
PSY’s cool admission “A clear fault and oversight”
PSY’s agency, P NATION, released an official statement in the early morning of the 28th, stating, “Receiving prescription medication like sleeping pills on behalf of someone else was a clear fault and oversight,” expressing, “We apologize.” Toward the end of the statement, they reiterated, “We apologize once again for causing concern,” aiming to quickly extinguish the flames of controversy.
The agency clarified that PSY has been taking medication only as per the predetermined dosage guides of medical professionals, and the issue arose during ‘proxy receipt’ rather than ‘proxy prescription’. This directly refutes the claims in the initial accusations that he received prescriptions under another person’s name.
Why the ‘world star’?… Acknowledging chronic sleep disorder
The agency also released information stating that PSY has been suffering from chronic sleep disorders for a long time. P NATION explained, “PSY has been diagnosed with chronic sleep disorders and is taking sleeping pills as prescribed by medical professionals,” suggesting that the current situation arose due to an unavoidable part of his treatment process. It highlights his struggles with sleepless nights offstage in contrast to his flamboyant onstage persona.
Between ‘proxy receipt’ and ‘proxy prescription’, where will the police investigation head?
Although PSY’s side emphasized that it was ‘proxy receipt’ and not ‘proxy prescription’, the matter is already in the hands of the police. The Seoul Seodaemun Police Station has recently booked PSY on charges of violating medical laws and is investigating the detailed circumstances of the incident.
According to current law, face-to-face consultation with a doctor is the principle for prescribing psychotropic drugs. Even if there was no ‘proxy prescription’ as PSY’s side claims, whether there was any illegality in the proxy receipt process through a third party is expected to be a key focal point of the police investigation. The world star’s sleepless nights seem likely to continue under the scrutiny of public interest for some time.