"We Will Examine Every Detail" Democratic Party, Jeong Ho-young Announces Rigorous Probe into 'Appa Chance' Allegations

Health and Welfare Minister nominee Jeong Ho-young is leaving the hearing preparation office set up at the Seoul Northern Regional Headquarters of the National Pension Service in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, on the 14th. / Photo by Yonhap News

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[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] As Jeong Ho-young, the nominee for the first Minister of Health and Welfare under the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, has been embroiled in allegations of 'preferential medical school transfer admissions for his children,' the Democratic Party of Korea has announced plans for a 'thorough investigation.' They intend to rigorously examine whether Jeong's children received unfair special treatment.

Oh Young-hwan, the Democratic Party's floor spokesperson, stated in a commentary on the 14th, "Jeong will be the standard by which the fairness and justice of the Yoon Seok-yeol government are judged," adding, "Jeong's son was listed as an author on two electronics engineering society papers just before his transfer admission. The special admission track he passed was newly established right before the transfer."

He continued, "Jeong claims there is no wrongdoing but has failed to provide evidence," and pointed out, "Jeong's children are the only transfer students from undergraduate programs at Kyungpook National University, and since their father was the hospital director, it was controversial even at the time. It is clearly an unfair special admission benefiting from 'dad's chance'."

He further emphasized, "If Jeong was involved in the transfer admissions of his two children, it is a very serious matter, making him unfit for public office and requiring legal action. The Democratic Party will thoroughly investigate the allegations of preferential treatment, including the volunteer work records of Jeong's two children at Kyungpook National University Hospital where he worked. Jeong must provide a convincing explanation to the public."

On the same day, Democratic Party lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi also wrote on Facebook, "If there really was no 'dad's chance,' then (like the investigation into former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk's family) he should be investigated by the same standards," and raised his voice, "If the law, justice, and fairness that President-elect Yoon has championed are absolute virtues, then please apply the same standards to Jeong, who has been a close acquaintance for 40 years."

On the morning of the 13th, Kim Seong-ju, the Democratic Party whip of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee, along with other lawmakers, held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Hall urging the withdrawal of candidate Jeong's nomination. / Photo by Yonhap News

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Democratic Party lawmaker Go Min-jung sarcastically pointed out on Facebook that "It just so happens that the 'special admission' for graduates from Daegu and Gyeongbuk was created in 2018, the very year Jeong's child was admitted," adding, "Not only I but also members of the Health and Welfare Committee have requested many documents from Kyungpook National University. Since you say there was no preferential treatment, you will agree to provide the requested documents, right?"

She then promised a thorough verification, saying, "Don't worry about anything else. We will examine the presence or absence of preferential treatment in detail."

Earlier, on the 13th, according to materials obtained by the office of Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Won-i, it was reported that while Jeong was serving as deputy director and director of Kyungpook National University Hospital, his daughter and son each passed the transfer admission process for Kyungpook National University Medical School.

Among the two children, the daughter passed the '2017 academic year Kyungpook National University Medical School bachelor's transfer admission' in December 2016, when Jeong was serving as the medical director (deputy director) of Kyungpook National University Hospital, and the son transferred after passing the '2018 academic year Kyungpook National University Medical School bachelor's transfer admission' special track after Jeong became the hospital director in 2017.

It was also confirmed that before transferring to Kyungpook National University Medical School, Jeong's two children had volunteer experience at Kyungpook National University Hospital, where their father served as deputy director and director.

Amid these circumstances, Jeong issued an official statement on the 14th, denying the allegations, saying, "I transferred through a lawful process according to the bachelor's transfer admission guidelines without any suspicion of wrongdoing." He added, "I will explain the details during the confirmation hearing."

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