Kim In-cheol's Fall, New Government Stumbles from the Start... Yoon's People Are Nervous

Democratic Party Intensifies Offensive Over Kim In-cheol's Resignation
Attention Focuses on Additional Fallouts Including Jeong Ho-young

Following the 'On Family Scholarship' benefit controversy, Kim In-cheol, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education nominee who is facing allegations of plagiarism in his student's thesis, spoke about his resignation in front of the nominee's office set up at the Korea Education Facilities Safety Institute in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 3rd, and then returned to the office. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporters Oh Ju-yeon, Lee Hyun-joo, Yoo Byung-don] Kim In-cheol, the Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Education nominee, announced his voluntary resignation on the 3rd, dealing an inevitable blow to the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, which is set to launch in a week. The Democratic Party of Korea's intensified demands for the dismissal of other first-term cabinet nominees are also expected to escalate.

On the 3rd, the Presidential Transition Committee and the People Power Party refrained from making official statements. However, internally, they appeared unsettled. A transition committee official, when asked about Kim’s resignation, stated, "There is no separate position from the transition committee," drawing a clear line. Kwon Seong-dong, the floor leader of the People Power Party, also did not respond to related questions after the plenary session, and Chief Spokesperson Heo Eun-ah said, "The party will stand in for the candidate’s resignation statement," choosing to remain reserved.

With a nominee voluntarily stepping down even before the government’s inauguration, attention is turning to the possibility of other nominees being 'dismissed.' The Democratic Party is targeting Kim In-cheol, Prime Minister nominee Han Duck-soo, and Minister nominees Han Dong-hoon for Justice and Jeong Ho-young for Health and Welfare. Floor leader Park Hong-geun criticized in the morning’s floor strategy meeting, saying, "Han Duck-soo, Jeong Ho-young, and Han Dong-hoon have already failed public scrutiny."

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol announced the inaugural cabinet lineup on the afternoon of the 10th at the 20th Presidential Transition Committee in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul. On this day, President-elect Yoon announced the appointments for the Minister of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. Photo by Transition Committee Press Corps

In the case of nominee Jeong Ho-young, significant issues surrounding him and his family continue to surface, leading some to suggest a 'voluntary resignation.' Controversies include allegations related to the medical school transfers of his two children, his son’s military service issues, overseas trips of a leisure nature, and improper use of corporate credit cards.

Prime Minister nominee Han Duck-soo, whose confirmation hearing began the day before, has been embroiled in revolving-door personnel and preferential treatment suspicions due to his career moving between public office and the law firm Kim & Chang. Additionally, Han Dong-hoon, a close aide to the president-elect and regarded as a symbol of prosecutorial reform, faces allegations of illicit apartment gift transfers, tax benefits, and false residence registrations. Floor leader Park emphasized, "This is not the Yoon Suk-yeol cabinet but the ‘Daddy’s Power’ cabinet," warning, "If these appointments are forcibly pushed through, it will be against public sentiment."

Nominees Won Hee-ryong for Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Choo Kyung-ho for Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, and Park Jin for Minister of Foreign Affairs are also embroiled in controversies. Won is accused of receiving large political donations from local construction companies and upgrading the use of his own house while governor. Choo has been accused of violating political funding laws by using political funds to pay rent and management fees. Park has faced allegations of false residence registration and bribery.

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