Personnel Hearing 'Super Week' Kicks Off Amid Risk of Yong Hye-in's Nomination Collapse
Six confirmation hearings for ministerial and senior post nominees will be held back-to-back at the National Assembly this week. With the fate of Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won effectively hanging in the balance and the possibility of Gender Equality and Family Minister nominee Yong Hye-in's nomination collapsing also being raised, the ruling and opposition parties are locked in a fierce battle. The hearings will proceed in the following order: Supreme Court Justice nominee Kim Sung-soo on the 14th; Lee Hyung-il, nominee for Prime Minister-designate and Finance Minister; Kim Seung-won, justice minister nominee; and Lee So-young, SMEs and Startups minister nominee, on the 15th; Kang Shin-chul, defense minister nominee, and Hong Ji-sun, land minister nominee, on the 16th; and Special Inspector nominee Choi Kil-soo on the 17th.
The biggest issue surrounding Kim is the suspicion that he lobbied for approval of Genensil's new drug clinical trials. The conservative opposition, led by the People Power Party, has raised allegations that in 2021, at the request of broker Yang Mo, Kim asked the food and drug safety chief to expedite approval of Genensil's COVID-19 treatment clinical trial plan, promising to receive 5 million won in sponsorship money in return. The case was closed with a suspended indictment in December 2024. The People Power Party argues the suspension was a wrongful prosecutorial decision and has gone as far as calling for a parliamentary investigation and a special prosecutor.
The Democratic Party countered that Rep. Han Dong-hoon had illegally obtained and leaked investigative data from the prosecution. It also emphasizes that the lobbying suspicion was a matter the prosecution deemed not to constitute serious charges, closing it with a suspended indictment. The party maintains that contacting the food and drug safety chief constituted a public interest petition permitted under the anti-graft law.
The timing of Yong Hye-in's hearing has been delayed due to disagreements between the ruling and opposition parties over the hearing schedule and the selection of witnesses. With both parties calling for her resignation over the issue of holding a proportional representation seat concurrently, she finds herself facing the risk of her nomination collapsing.
The battlefront has spread to other nominees as well. The People Power Party has been pressing Kang Shin-chul, Lee Hyung-il, Lee So-young and Hong Ji-sun with real estate allegations. Kang has been embroiled in a 'redevelopment lottery' controversy after he, his father, his aunt and his brother — four family members — all obtained eligibility for special redevelopment allocations for displaced residents. Lee Hyung-il is criticized for owning a Gwacheon apartment for 17 years while actually living there for only four months, and Lee So-young for buying an apartment in Seodaemun District while living in a rental in her constituency, allegedly gaining 700 million won in paper profits. Hong sparked controversy when it emerged that she bought a Seoul apartment, borrowing even money from her in-laws, while serving as head of Gyeonggi Province's urban housing office, where she pushed for the 'basic housing' program.
With the Chuseok (25th) holiday approaching, public opinion shaped by the hearings is acting as a variable in the political situation. As the intensity of the opposition's attacks increases, so does the area the Democratic Party must defend.
