Actor T.O.P of Bigbang arrives for the marie claire Asia Star Awards during the 18th Busan International Film Festival on October 5, 2013 in Busan, South Korea. (Photo : Getty Images/Chung Sung-Jun)
BIGBANG's T.O.P has left the world of K-Pop to complete his two years of mandatory military service. However, the idol still cannot manage to stay out of headlines.
A week after the rapper started his military training along with JYJ's Junsu, T.O.P is being accused of using his celebrity status to get special treatment in the military. Netizens started throwing accusations after photos of T.O.P and Junsu were shared on the Nonsan army training camp website.
The images showed both idols dressed in military uniform along with fellow soldiers from their group. But, netizens were quick to notice that T.O.P was the only soldier who was allowed to wear his green nametag on the left-hand side instead of the right, leading to accusations that he was being treated as a VIP.
T.O.P Military Group Photo from Nonsan Army Training Center 2017-02-15 #BIGBANG #빅뱅 #TOP #ChoiSeungHyun #탑 #최승현 https://t.co/lwhmmIoCxM pic.twitter.com/S4LXkZGIjT
— TOP of the TOP (@TOP_oftheTOP) February 15, 2017
"If a non-celebrity wore it like that then they would have to run 10 laps," All Kpop quoted a netizen as saying. "They probably let him go since he's a celebrity. If it was a non-celeb who did that then they would've gotten disciplined so bad," wrote another furious netizen.
In the wake of the controversy, a representative from the boot camp released an official statement, obtained by the same publication. The statement said saying that the soldiers are required to wear the name-tag on the right, but Choi Seung Hyun, which is T.O.P's real name, wore it on the opposite side by mistake.
This is not the first time that a celebrity has been accused of receiving preferential treatment during their mandatory military service. Super Junior's Shindong, who returned from military duty in December, was also accused of receiving special treatment due to his substantial weight gain and long hair.
T.O.P started his military enlistment at the Nonsan training camp on Feb. 9. The idol will undergo four weeks of training at the camp before fulfilling his duty as a conscripted policeman until November 2018, as previously reported by Korea Portal. For more details on this story, watch the video below:
