‘A Blue House order?’: Opposition walks out as justice, defense minister nominees clear committees

Two controversial ministerial nominees cleared key parliamentary committees Thursday despite strong opposition from the People Power Party (PPP), which boycotted or walked out of votes on their confirmation hearing reports.

The Democratic Party (DP) railroaded the adoption of the confirmation hearing report for Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won at the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee on Thursday. The National Defense Committee also adopted the confirmation hearing report for Defense Minister nominee Ret. Gen. Kang Shin-chul the same day.

PPP lawmakers walked out just 10 minutes after the judiciary committee meeting began to protest the decision to put Kim's hearing report to a vote. While Cabinet ministers do not require parliamentary approval, adopting the report completes the National Assembly's vetting process before presidential appointment.

"Aren't they trying to rush this through before President Lee Jae Myung's press conference?" Rep. Kwak Kyu-taek of the PPP said. "Did the Blue House order the report to be adopted today?"

Kwak's remarks suggested that the confirmation hearing report on Kim, who faces allegations of improperly lobbying authorities to approve a drug, was being rushed to ease pressure on Lee ahead of a press conference scheduled for Friday.

"I told Rep. Kim Eui-kyeom, the DP's committee secretary, yesterday that we could not cooperate with adopting the report when none of the allegations had been resolved," Rep. Park Hyeung-soo, the PPP's committee secretary, said. "We were told that it wasn't added to the agenda until after 11 p.m. last night. This is an ambush."

PPP Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun also said the DP should handle the matter in a way that meets the public's expectations rather than "trying to meet President Lee Jae Myung's expectations."

"Look at why the Yoon Suk Yeol administration failed. If the DP continues with this attitude, it will go down the same path," Rep. Yoon added.

The DP rejected the accusation that it had synchronized the report's adoption with Lee's press conference.

"What do you mean we scheduled this for today because the president is holding a press conference?" Rep. Seo Young-kyo of the DP, who chairs the judiciary committee, said. "We said that once the hearing was over, we should adopt the report either that day or the next."

The PPP held a press conference immediately afterward to condemn the adoption.

"Are we really declaring war on the people just to have the charges against President Lee Jae Myung dropped?" the PPP said. "Adopting the hearing report and claiming the allegations have been resolved after hearing nothing but the nominee's one-sided explanations and DP lawmakers rallying to his defense amounts to giving him a predetermined clean bill of health."

Most PPP lawmakers also boycotted the National Defense Committee's adoption of Kang's confirmation hearing report Thursday afternoon.

Rep. Lim Jong-deuk, the PPP's committee secretary, and Rep. Chun Ha-ram of the Reform Party attended, but walked out without voting after stating their opposition.

"After the confirmation hearing ended past 11 p.m. yesterday, PPP lawmakers gathered to discuss the matter," Rep. Lim said. "Every one of us concluded that Kang was unfit to serve as defense minister."

"Kang lacks conviction and is incompetent," Lim added, explaining why PPP lawmakers had decided to boycott the committee meeting.

Opposition lawmakers, including Chun of the Reform Party and some from the PPP, laid out their objections to the retired general in a press conference earlier Thursday.

"The ruling party rammed through a hollow confirmation hearing without calling a single witness or expert to testify," the lawmakers said. "We cannot entrust the country's defense to a nominee who falls far short in qualifications and policy expertise simply because the ruling party is eager to please the Blue House."

They also accused Kang of withholding materials needed to examine allegations raised during the confirmation process, including claims that his son received preferential treatment while serving in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps.

Kang's responses on the transfer of wartime operational control also drew criticism.

"On the transfer of wartime operational control, he said he supports a conditions-based transfer, yet also introduced the notion that it must be based on trust — something the public has never heard of," the lawmakers said. "He even answered that restoration and transfer mean the same thing, forcing us to correct basic matters of common sense during the hearing."

BY OH SO-YEONG, CHO MUN-GYU [[email protected]]