Rep. Yeom Tae-young of the Democratic Party of Korea said allegations that Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won lobbied the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety were "raised starting in 2022 and investigated by more than 10 prosecutors under then-Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration."
Appearing on the National Assembly Television program "National Assembly Live 6," Yeom criticized Han, now an independent lawmaker leading the attacks on Kim, saying it is "not appropriate to bring back a matter that ended in a suspended indictment and turn it into a political dispute," according to Yeom's office on the 8th.
"It would be a problem if he had directly pressured the food and drug agency to change review standards or evaluation results, but what was confirmed at the time was a process of conveying the content of a civil complaint, checking the progress or reasons for delay, and responding to the complainant," Yeom said. "There was no indication that the results were distorted or that there was improper intervention in the review."
Yeom argued that Han should be called as a witness at Kim's confirmation hearing. "We need to examine whether using materials on a matter under investigation as grounds for an offensive could constitute leaking official secrets," he said. "As justice minister at the time, he may have been briefed on the investigation or used related materials, so there are ample grounds for adopting him as a witness."
Yeom also said that as a member of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, he needs to examine the home purchase process and the facts surrounding Land Minister nominee Hong Ji-sun.
"It is excessive to portray a normal transaction made for the purpose of living in the home as if it were speculation or an investment made by stretching finances to the limit," Yeom said. "Vetting of a land minister nominee should be based on facts, not on the People Power Party forcibly inflating controversy." He added, "We should take seriously the concerns of citizens struggling with housing insecurity and home prices, but a nominee's personal home transaction and the government's housing policy should be assessed separately."
Yeom also said the central theme of Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok's first negotiating bloc representative speech was "putting people's livelihoods first." He also explained his role as chairman of the party's Committee for Good Local Government and his legislative plans as a member of the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee on key issues such as balanced regional development and putting railways underground.
