Kim Dae-gi Draws a Line on Calls for Dismissal over 'Itaewon Disaster'... "Urgent Need Is Cause Analysis"

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Kim Dae-gi, Chief of Staff to the President, is attending the National Assembly's audit on the Presidential Secretariat held on the 8th and is reporting on the work./Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] Kim Dae-gi, Chief of Staff to the President, emphasized on the 8th that no cabinet members or presidential office aides have expressed their intention to resign in relation to the 'Itaewon Halloween crowd crush disaster.' Regarding the opposition party's calls for accountability and dismissal of the Prime Minister, Minister of the Interior and Safety, and Commissioner General of the National Police Agency, he stated that "analyzing the cause of the accident comes first."

On the morning of the 8th, during the National Assembly Steering Committee's audit of the presidential office, Kim responded "not yet" to the question from Chun Jun-ho, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, asking if any cabinet members such as the Prime Minister, ministers, or the police chief had expressed their intention to resign.

When asked if any presidential office aides had expressed their intention to resign, he also said "no," and when Chun asked again if there had been any recommendations for disciplinary personnel changes to President Yoon, Kim answered "no."

Kim reiterated President Yoon Seok-yeol's stance that managing the disaster and identifying its cause take priority over personnel actions. Kim said, "We also find it hard to understand how such an incident occurred; there are many parts that are beyond our government's comprehension. So, we will first wait for the investigation results."

He added, "As you said, changing personnel now might be important, but then what would you do next? Then there would be hearings, and two months would pass, causing administrative gaps..."

Democratic Party lawmaker Choi Ki-sang pointed out that during the Seongsu Bridge collapse and the Korean University Student Union Federation (Han-chong-ryeon) incident, the Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior resigned, criticizing that high-ranking officials in the Yoon administration have not expressed their intention to resign. Kim countered, "Back then, during the Seongsu Bridge incident, there was no confirmation hearing system, so if a minister was replaced, it could be done immediately again, but now if you replace a minister, the police chief, and the Seoul police chief, time passes."

Kim also emphasized that during the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster, Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Lee Ju-young managed the accident response and resigned eight months later.

When Choi asked, "Did you promise Minister Lee Sang-min of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety a vote of confidence? Without that, the attitude shown by Minister Lee at the National Assembly's Administrative and Safety Committee is unacceptable," Kim replied, "No promise was made," but reiterated, "Even if those people step down, that is not the urgent matter. The urgent matter is to determine the cause of this disaster and who should be held accountable, and that must be decided first."

Minister Lee said at the full meeting of the Administrative and Safety Committee the previous day, "I have never expressed my intention to resign," and "Going through this, I have renewed my determination to work even harder."

Meanwhile, Kim expressed his wish that the 'victim list disclosure' text message related to the Itaewon disaster, which was exposed on Democratic Party lawmaker Moon Jin-seok's mobile phone, would not become a political issue, saying, "I sincerely hope such a tragic disaster does not become a political matter."

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