Special Inspector to Emerge After 10 Years as Judiciary Committee Adopts Confirmation Report

The National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee on Thursday (October 22) adopted a confirmation hearing report on Special Inspector nominee Choi Gil-soo.

Holding a plenary session on Thursday, the committee passed the confirmation report, which included both "qualified" and "unqualified" opinions through bipartisan agreement.

This comes 34 days after the committee conducted a confirmation hearing for nominee Choi on September 18.

In the report, the committee deemed Choi qualified, citing his stated commitment to maintaining political neutrality and independence, his pledge to normalize the Special Inspector's organization, and his expertise in inspection work.

On the other hand, the report also included an unqualified opinion, noting that if Choi—recommended by the ruling party among three candidates put forward by the ruling and opposition parties and the Korean Bar Association—is appointed, it would be difficult to carry out inspections independently.

During last month's hearing, the Democratic Party of Korea called for inspections into officials from the previous Yoon Suk Yeol administration, while the People Power Party urged an inspection into Kim Hyun-ji, head of the First Private Secretariat at the Blue House.

If President Lee Jae-myung appoints nominee Choi, the 10-year vacancy in the Special Inspector post will come to an end.

The Special Inspector, tasked with monitoring corruption involving the president's relatives and close associates, has remained vacant ever since Lee Seok-su, the inaugural Special Inspector, stepped down in September 2016, as neither the Moon Jae-in nor the Yoon Suk Yeol administrations made an appointment.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.