Kim Nam-guk's Name Not Found in Wemade's National Assembly Access Records... Will the Suspicion Be Cleared?

Situation Changed, but Lobby Suspicion Remains
Ruling Party's Kim Woong and Others Raise Allegations... Kim Nam-guk Remains Low-Profile

Amid suspicions of billions of coin transactions, Kim Nam-guk, a member of the Democratic Party who left the party, is under suspicion of lobbying by the P2E (Play to Earn) game company 'Wemade.' However, the National Assembly Secretariat's disclosed Wemade National Assembly entry records show that Kim Nam-guk's office was not included. While some voices claim that the lobbying suspicion has been cleared, there are also criticisms that the absence of entry records alone cannot wash away the lobbying allegations.

Lee Kyung, deputy spokesperson of the Democratic Party, stated on his social media (SNS) on the 25th, "Wemade 'lobbying suspicion' cleared. Confirmed the publicly disclosed National Assembly visit records," implying that Kim Nam-guk has cleared the lobbying suspicion with this record disclosure.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The reason he said the "lobbying suspicion has been cleared" is that Kim Nam-guk's office was not included in the Wemade entry records disclosed by the National Assembly Secretariat that day. According to the Wemade National Assembly entry records disclosed by the Secretariat, Wemade visited the offices of People Power Party members Yoon Chang-hyun, Jeong Hee-yong, and Heo Eun-ah, as well as Democratic Party members Yang Jeong-sook, Kim Han-gyu, Kim Jong-min, Oh Ki-hyung, and Kim Sung-joo from September 2020 to last April.

However, there are also criticisms that the absence of Wemade's entry records alone cannot completely clear the lobbying suspicion. Kim Woong, a People Power Party member, pointed out, "The claim that there was no lobbying because there is no record of visiting Kim Nam-guk's office is completely wrong for two reasons."

Kim Woong said, "This claim is based on the assumption that lobbying only takes place inside National Assembly members' offices, but common sense suggests that illegal lobbying would happen outside, not in members' offices where visit records remain." He also added that even if the National Assembly member's office was not visited, there remains the possibility of lobbying targeting party leaders or senior party officials who are not National Assembly members.

The members whose offices were confirmed to have Wemade entry records each issued explanations. Kim Han-gyu said, "Wemade only met with our aides, not me," and added, "For reference, I have never invested in virtual assets." Kim Jong-min also stated, "It has been confirmed that none of the aides in my office, including myself, have ever invested in virtual assets such as WEMIX."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Oh Ki-hyung said, "On November 30 last year, one Wemade employee visited to explain the delisting of WEMIX to two aides, and I was neither involved in nor attended the meeting."

Yoon Chang-hyun also explained, "Wemade met only with aides when entering the office, but I have never met them," and added, "Neither I nor my responsible aides have any record of investing in virtual assets or even registering as exchange members."

Jeong Hee-yong also said that Wemade requested a petition regarding intellectual property litigation and met with him, but "I have never received any explanation related to virtual assets or any improper requests from Wemade." Heo Eun-ah said, "I have never met Wemade, and I have never traded coins even once."

Kim Nam-guk has been missing for nearly ten days after leaving the party, and attention is focused on whether he will issue a separate statement regarding the fact that his office was not included in the Wemade National Assembly entry records. On the same day, Democratic Party member Ahn Min-seok appeared on YTN radio's 'News King Park Ji-hoon' in the morning and spoke about Kim's recent status, saying, "I contacted Kim Nam-guk on the 23rd. He said, 'I understand the feelings of someone who has made an extreme choice.'"

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