Five-Year-Old Enrollment Park Soon-ae and Political Fund Violation Kim Seung-hee Fall One After Another... Han Duck-soo "Regretful"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Prime Minister Han Duck-soo apologized on the 19th regarding the personnel scandal of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, stating, "I think there is some responsibility."

During the National Assembly's government questioning session that day, Prime Minister Han expressed regret concerning the issues with former Vice Minister of Social Affairs and Education Minister candidate Park Soon-ae and former Health and Welfare Minister candidate Kim Seung-hee.

Kang Byung-won, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, focused on personnel issues, mentioning Prime Minister Han's authority to recommend appointments.

When Kang asked whether Prime Minister Han had recommended former Vice Minister Park, Han replied, "I lacked knowledge in the education field, so I listened to recommendations from others nearby," adding, "I did not play a leading role."

Kang referred to the current system that disqualifies individuals with drunk driving records from becoming school principals and raised concerns about the recommendation of former Vice Minister Park, who had a drunk driving history. In response, Prime Minister Han said, "If the court has given a verdict and the person is forgiven and understood, then it is possible."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Regarding the admission of five-year-olds, which former Vice Minister Park had promoted, Prime Minister Han said, "Some education experts believe that it is more problematic for children from wealthy and less wealthy backgrounds to receive different education from an early age, and that it is more helpful for children to receive good education on the same playground under national responsibility from an early age," adding, "However, I agree that it should not be pushed recklessly and must consider public acceptance." This acknowledges that there were issues during the promotion process. Prime Minister Han also admitted that the admission of five-year-olds was not a national agenda of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration.

Regarding former candidate Kim, there was criticism of President Yoon's remark that he "proudly selected people without gaps and believes it is not comparable to the previous administration." Kang pointed out the inappropriateness of the president's statement, citing the ongoing investigation into former candidate Kim for violations of the Political Funds Act.

In response, Prime Minister Han said, "Evaluations of people can vary slightly," and added, "It is difficult to interpret every word of the president's remarks."

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