Frugal Living Code Adhered to All his Life

The respected Comrade Kim Jong Un said:

"Even though he was held in high respect and admiration by our people and progressive people around the world, President Kim Il Sung rejected any special favour or privilege for himself, and always led a simple and frugal life with his people."

President Kim Il Sung, who was very respected and adored by our people and the progressives across the world, was a great person ever known. However, he was a parent-like person of people who led a modest and simple life without an inch of gap with people, allowing no special benefits and privileges all his life.

There was a principle he kept throughout his life. It was to live the same life as people without any difference.

There is no need to wear the luxury clothes when meeting the people. Wearing any new or comparable clothes may make them uncomfortable to contact with him.

This is his view of the wearing clothes.

In the spring of Juche 36(1947), an elderly woman from Naejung community, Ryongchon County(present Naejung-ri, Yomju County) weaved thread into cloth in person and made a hemp shirt by herself and presented the president. Valuing her sincerity, he even tried it on.

Even though he valued people's simple wish, he refused to make new clothes for him with quality cloth to replace with his old clothes. He said he would accept such new clothes when our people could wear the same sort. He then asked them to make his old clothes inside-out.

Officials, as they were told, had to make his old suit inside-out. President was satisfied with it, saying that how good it was once weather-beaten clothes were recycled with the inside out.

One winter day, an official could not help being surprised, while looking at his shoes. The shoes were down at the heels.

Understanding the official's inner thought, President said he could still wear them and it would be good in case the heels were repaired.

The official could not possibly do so and persuaded him to wear new shoes by all means several times.

However, the President insisted. The official had no other way but to repair the shoes for him.

The president was pleased with the mended shoes, saying they were almost like new ones, happily wore them with the heels darned and embarked on the road of on-the-spot guidance.

The President always lived plainly and ordinarily exactly like people, while devoting his everything for people. Such indefinitely frugal life lasted until the last period of his life.

Indeed, the President's whole life was a frugal one that is of sharp contrast to his great exploits that he achieved.