Candidate Seo Wook: "There Are Inadequate Issues Related to Seo Family Favoritism Allegations"

On the 16th, at the confirmation hearing for Defense Minister nominee Seo Wook held at the National Assembly, Lee Chae-ik, a member of the People Power Party, is making remarks related to Hwang Hee, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea. / 2020.09.16

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] On the 16th, the hearing for the nominee for Minister of National Defense, Seo Wook, also focused on the controversy over alleged military favors granted to the son of Minister of Justice Chu Mi-ae, Mr. Seo.

Nominee Seo Wook expressed regret regarding the allegations involving Minister Chu’s son, saying, "I am sorry for causing concern to the public due to this incident," and added, "There were several shortcomings within the military. There were also administrative issues."

In his written response submitted to the National Assembly’s Defense Committee, Seo answered the question, "Do you think disciplinary action should be taken if favors were obtained through irregular means?" by stating, "Unfair discrimination or special treatment should not exist, and any related corruption must be strictly dealt with according to laws and regulations," drawing attention to the extent of possible disciplinary measures.

On the 15th, during the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs, Unification, and Security Committee’s government questioning session, Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo responded to People Power Party lawmaker Ha Tae-kyung’s question about cases like Mr. Seo’s, where a phone inquiry to extend sick leave was met with a reply to "return to duty first," and the extension was denied due to the absence of a military hospital’s medical review. Jeong replied, "That is in accordance with the regulations," implying that Mr. Seo’s case could be defined as preferential treatment.

Mr. Seo took sick leave twice in 2017 (first from June 5 to 14, second from June 15 to 23) and immediately took personal leave from June 24 to 27. According to Army regulations, if the leave was normal, Mr. Seo should have returned to his unit on the 23rd and then applied for personal leave, but he did not return. According to a duty soldier A, on Sunday, June 25, a person presumed to be from the Army Headquarters visited and instructed, "Process Mr. Seo as on leave." The Ministry of National Defense stated, "There is a record that Mr. Seo’s personal leave was pre-approved, and it was merely a delay in personnel orders."

In his opening remarks, nominee Seo said, "I will develop the military into one that the public sympathizes with and soldiers are proud of through transparent and efficient defense operations," and added, "I will build a military trusted by the people."

The Defense Committee plans to review whether to adopt the hearing report on nominee Seo immediately after the hearing.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.