[Law & Story] Why Kim Nam-guk Faces Public Outrage

Seokjin Choi, Legal Affairs Reporter

"I believe this is a ‘Han Dong-hoon prosecution work’ by Yoon Seok-yeol’s faction."

This was the first statement made by Kim Nam-guk, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, on his Facebook the day after suspicions related to cryptocurrency arose. He called it "a very shallow trick to cover up Yoon Seok-yeol’s mismanagement" and even proposed a truth game risking his political life and entire assets. But that was not the case. The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), which received a report from a suspicious cryptocurrency exchange, handed over the materials to the prosecution.

Kim’s remarks have sparked public outrage. Not only the ruling party but also members of his own Democratic Party have joined in criticizing his inappropriate conduct.

The level of criticism is escalating to the point where people wonder, ‘Is it really something to be condemned this harshly just because he is a member of the National Assembly involved in cryptocurrency trading?’ Former Minister Cho Kuk, who faced intense scrutiny ahead of his confirmation hearing, still received support from his allies, but Kim has even lost support from his own side.

Of course, as a member of the National Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee, Kim’s act of proposing a bill to postpone taxation on cryptocurrency income and voting in favor of it presents a conflict of interest. His behavior of trading cryptocurrency during committee meetings or confirmation hearings deserves criticism.

However, that is not the main issue. If, as Kim claimed, there was no illegality, he could have simply bowed his head in apology for political and moral responsibility and ended the matter. But now, that stage has passed.

Even if the investigation does not reveal any criminal liability or problems with the source of funds used for investment, it seems difficult for Kim to continue his political career.

The point where the public is outraged at Kim is his lies and duplicity.

Especially, his response after the issue surfaced fueled the anger. He boasted that he himself requested a fact-finding investigation from the party, but when the investigation began, he did not submit the necessary materials. He did not accept the investigation team formed by the party nor the verification methods, failed to transparently disclose all materials, and did not sincerely participate in the investigation. He also broke his promise to faithfully implement the party’s recommendation for his resignation.

There was no explanatory press conference like the one held by former Minister Cho Kuk. Instead, he appeared on broadcasts by trusted allies and lied again. He claimed that the cryptocurrency trades in the National Assembly were only worth a few thousand won, but traces of transactions ranging from at least tens of thousands to several million won were revealed. He said he did not vote in favor of the bill to postpone cryptocurrency taxation, but that too was a lie. None of his explanations about the amount of cryptocurrency held, transaction volume, or trading locations were true.

He staged a ‘poor cosplay’ while raising the largest amount of donations among all members of the National Assembly last year. It was a brilliant performance as a cryptocurrency billionaire worth tens of billions of won. Wearing a jumper given by the party and holey sneakers, he appeared on a YouTube broadcast boasting, "I went on a business trip, booked only one motel room, and three of us including my aide slept together," which became evidence proving his hypocrisy.

Now that Kim is a suspect, the only choice left is to step down from his position as a member of the National Assembly as soon as possible. He may want to hold on until the investigation results come out, but that is stubbornness and greed. Above all, if he holds on, the damage to the Democratic Party will be too great.

Now is not the time to fight by calling it a ‘political investigation,’ but the time to reflect on his lies and apologize.

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