Yeo "President Yoon Must Withdraw Nomination of Kim Young-ho as Minister of Unification"

Yeo "Candidates refuse to submit basic materials for confirmation hearings"
Concerns over regression in National Assembly hearing verification standards

The Democratic Party of Korea on the 27th demanded the withdrawal of the nomination of Kim Young-ho as Minister of Unification. They also expressed concerns that creating a ‘blind hearing’ due to the submission of materials could regress the level of National Assembly verification.

Members of the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee from the Democratic Party held a press conference at the National Assembly on the same day, stating, "President Yoon Seok-yeol requested the resubmission of the personnel hearing report on nominee Kim Young-ho for Minister of Unification," and added, "It was clearly revealed through the personnel hearing held on the 21st that he is an unqualified candidate. Democratic Party members strongly demand Kim Young-ho’s voluntary resignation and the President’s withdrawal of the nomination."

They particularly expressed concern about the refusal to submit materials. Democratic Party Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee members said, "Kim not only refused to submit basic materials regarding himself but also those related to his spouse and direct descendants, and refused to disclose real estate-related materials with the absurd reason that ‘there is another party involved, so materials cannot be submitted.’ This made it a ‘blind hearing’ that made even the minimum moral verification impossible. Such an attitude that nullifies the personnel hearing system and disregards the people and the National Assembly is inappropriate for a public office candidate," they pointed out.

Democratic Party lawmakers expressed concern that "this personnel hearing will lead to repeated refusals to submit materials by ministerial candidates, which will not only nullify the National Assembly’s hearings on ministers but also regress the level of verification."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

They also raised issues regarding the qualifications of the ministerial candidate. Democratic Party lawmakers said, "The candidate has openly revealed a hostile view toward North Korea through his YouTube activities and actively expressed opposition to inter-Korean agreements and the government’s official unification plan, the ‘National Community Unification Plan.’ Regarding the problematic remarks and expressions, he consistently excused himself by saying they were ‘various perspectives and views expressed as a scholar,’ and flip-flopped his stance by saying he would ‘follow the government’s policy.’" They criticized, "With the candidate’s inconsistent attitude and outdated, Cold War mindset, he is not only incapable of resolving the complex and delicate inter-Korean issues but will rather worsen them, making him unsuitable as Minister of Unification."

Democratic Party lawmakers also urged President Yoon to appoint a figure advocating inter-Korean reconciliation. They said, "We hope President Yoon will remember that withdrawing Kim’s nomination and appointing someone who advocates inter-Korean reconciliation and cooperation will be better evaluated in the future."

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