Candidate Lee Gyunyong Opposes Third-Party New Choice: "What Is Not, Is Not"

Concerns Over Judicial Vacuum Crisis, But Opposition to Appointment of Lee Gyunyong Unavoidable
Democratic Party to Hold Party Meeting for Discussion... Atmosphere Leaning Toward 'Opposition'

Saeroun Seontaek officially announced its opposition to the appointment of Lee Gyun-yong as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on the 4th. They stated that even if a vacancy in the Chief Justice position is inevitable, "what is wrong is wrong."

The Preparatory Committee for the Saeroun Seontaek Party clearly expressed their opposition to the vote scheduled for the 6th on the appointment consent bill for candidate Lee as Chief Justice.

They said, "The biggest problem of the previous Moon Jae-in administration was that it ruined the judiciary. Former Chief Justice Kim Myung-soo will be recorded as the worst Chief Justice in the history of the Korean judiciary," but added, "If the alternative nominated as Kim’s successor is ‘a close friend of the current president’s close friend,’ we cannot quietly agree to this."

They continued, "The inappropriateness of candidate Lee is too numerous to list," pointing out, "The fact that his son, who lacks qualifications, was hired as an intern at a major law firm smells of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, and submitting property details insincerely or not submitting them at all during the confirmation hearing preparation raises doubts about even the minimum legal compliance."

The Preparatory Committee stated, "The fact that candidate Lee ranked 39th out of 40 court presidents in the nationwide court presidents’ multi-faceted evaluation in the first half of 2022 proves his lack of ability even as a judge," and criticized, "President Yoon Seok-yeol’s insistence on nominating such a person as Chief Justice can only be understood as completely ignoring the people."

While expressing concern about the vacancy crisis in the Chief Justice position, they also indicated that it must be endured. They said, "It is the first time in 30 years that the Chief Justice position remains vacant. Considering the appointment process for Supreme Court justices whose terms end on January 1 next year, an unprecedented judicial vacancy crisis may occur," but added, "Even so, what is wrong is wrong."

The Preparatory Committee demanded that President Yoon withdraw the nomination and consider a new candidate. They said, "President Yoon must immediately withdraw the nomination of Lee Gyun-yong as Chief Justice and review new candidates," adding, "We cannot allow the judiciary to be messed up again by succumbing to the president’s obstinacy."

Saeroun Seontaek is a political force preparing to launch a party by mid-December, led by former lawmaker Geum Tae-seop, convenience store owner and writer under the pen name ‘Bong Dal-ho’ Kwak Dae-jung, and former spokesperson of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions Jeong Ho-hee, among others.

The Democratic Party, which is effectively the ruling party with the power to decide the approval or rejection of the appointment consent bill, expressed opposition to candidate Lee. Hong Ik-pyo, the Democratic Party floor leader, said in an MBC radio interview that "the overall mood is strongly negative." Earlier, Park Yong-jin, the Democratic Party lawmaker who served as the party’s secretary for the confirmation hearing committee, stated on social media the day before, "As the secretary, I will report once again the unanimous opinion of all our confirmation committee members on this appointment consent bill following the previous party meeting," adding, "The unanimous opinion of all Democratic Party members is that candidate Lee Gyun-yong is highly unqualified to become the head of the Korean judiciary." The Democratic Party plans to discuss the appointment consent bill for candidate Lee through a party meeting.

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