Han Byung-do, floor leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, welcomed President Lee Jae-myung's first cabinet reshuffle on the 31st, saying the appointments "completed the framework of a dynamic and young cabinet through pragmatic placement of talent centered on expertise and field experience rather than seniority or background." He pushed back strongly against the opposition People Power Party, saying it "started branding and smearing the nominees before hearing schedules were even set."
Speaking at a Democratic Party supreme council meeting at the National Assembly, Han said, "The Democratic Party welcomes these appointments, which combine policy expertise and drive." He added that he expects the new lineup "to lead South Korea's great transformation and become fresh momentum that accelerates the nation's leap forward."
Han said the appointments of a senior presidential secretary for AI future planning, a vice chairman of the National AI Strategy Committee, an aide for mega-projects and a special adviser for political affairs "further strengthened the innovation capacity needed to make Korea one of the world's top three AI powers and to push forward national mega-projects."
He sharpened his criticism of the People Power Party's attacks on the reshuffle. "The moment the appointments were announced, the People Power Party began pouring out extreme, abusive language, talking about state terrorism and a society-wide collapse," Han said.
He was particularly critical of People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyuk's claim that Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won had served as a defense lawyer in the Daejang-dong case. "Leader Jang has gone out and spread the false claim that he was a Daejang-dong defense lawyer," Han said. "Not even fiction is this far-fetched."
"Vetting can be done at the confirmation hearings, based on facts and evidence," Han said. "Throwing cold water on the reshuffle before vetting has even begun amounts to a declaration that they intend to drag the confirmation hearings into partisan strife."
He added that the party "will thoroughly vet the ability and qualifications of public office nominees by the standards the public expects, while responding firmly to the opposition's digging into personal affairs and malicious political maneuvering." He stressed, "So that there is not a single moment of vacuum in the Lee Jae-myung administration's governance, we will swiftly wrap up the confirmation process for cabinet ministers before the Chuseok holiday."
Han also called on the government to move quickly in the search for people missing in the massive flooding in Nepal. The government dispatched a first rapid response team on the 27th, followed by a second team of nine members sent to Nepal on the 29th.
"Over the weekend, the joint response team conducted visual searches and video filming from a helicopter over the accident area, but did not find the missing," he said. "Local weather conditions, rugged terrain and rising river levels that raise concerns about further flooding are making the search and rescue effort very difficult."
"Six days have passed since the flooding, so a faster rescue operation is desperately needed," he said, urging the government to "secure the resources needed for the search and rescue quickly, based on consultations with the Nepalese government."
