Democratic Party: "Kim In-cheol Deputy Prime Minister Nominee Faces Unbelievable Incidents and Continuous Allegations"

"We will thoroughly review whether the qualifications and capabilities are met"

Kim In-cheol, the nominee for Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Education, is entering the confirmation hearing preparation office set up at the Korea Educational Facilities Safety Institute in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 14th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Education committee members affiliated with the Democratic Party of Korea raised doubts on the 17th about the qualifications and capabilities of Kim In-cheol, the nominee for Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Education.

The Democratic Party education committee members stated in a press release that "Although only a few days have passed since Kim In-cheol was nominated as Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Education, unbelievable incidents and suspicions surrounding him have continuously emerged," adding, "It is problematic not only that there are many revealed incidents and suspicions, but also when examining their details, we cannot help but doubt whether nominee Kim is an appropriate person to be responsible for the education of 9 million students."

They expressed concern, saying, "During Kim’s tenure as president of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, the conflicts he had with students and his attitude and remarks toward students during the conflict resolution process shocked us," and "From his first year in office, he caused controversy by installing statues of pro-Japanese figures, and later, by appointing a former president who was involved in embezzlement of school funds as an honorary professor, which led to extreme conflicts within the university."

They listed issues such as the 'gold spoon family environment investigation,' which required identifying whether seven occupational groups including high-ranking officials, members of the National Assembly, legal professionals, and company representatives were present in the students’ families; allegations that high grades were given to athletes who did not attend classes; and the high-handed attitude he showed when dealing with student council presidents and others.

The Democratic Party education committee members said, "It is problematic that his life is stained with all kinds of problematic incidents and suspicions, but we also question what kind of professional insight and experience nominee Kim has regarding education, especially primary and secondary education," and added, "We will thoroughly verify the life nominee Kim has lived so far, and furthermore, we will carefully examine whether he possesses sufficient qualifications and capabilities to be responsible for our children and our education."

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