"Ask for Quick Processing" Text Message Lobbying? Opposition Blasts Nominee as "Unqualified"

[Anchor]

Controversy is growing over revelations that Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won previously received a stay of indictment on allegations that he lobbied the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety after being asked by an acquaintance to help secure clinical trial approval for a new COVID-19 drug. The opposition bloc has labeled him unqualified and called for his resignation.

Reporter Park Chan-beom has the details.

[Reporter]

This is a text message that Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won sent on September 1 to Rep. Seo Young-kyo of the Democratic Party, who chairs the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, from the National Assembly plenary chamber.

The message explains the "MFDS lobbying suspicion," stating that even the court in the related case denied any quid pro quo for the mediation.

In December 2024, nominee Kim, who was an opposition lawmaker at the time, received a stay of indictment over allegations that he relayed lobbying efforts to then-MFDS Minister Kim Gang-lip regarding the approval of clinical trials for a new drug.

Back in October 2021, a new drug development company was pushing for MFDS approval of a COVID-19 treatment.

According to related rulings and other documents, an individual surnamed Kang, linked to the company, asked an individual surnamed Yang to help get the clinical trials approved. Yang then sought assistance from nominee Kim, an acquaintance, and Kim allegedly asked then-Minister Kim Gang-lip to expedite the approval process.

Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon publicly questioned nominee Kim yesterday, asking whether it is true that Kim sent a lobbying text message to the former minister at the time, mentioning the company's name and stating, "Please ask the working-level officials to handle this quickly."

The first-instance ruling concerning Kang, connected to the company, also states that Yang sent a text message to nominee Kim asking him to "please ask the relevant division at the MFDS to process the work quickly."

Yang and nominee Kim were also photographed together at an event in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, in February 2023.

The People Power Party demanded nominee Kim's resignation.

[Park Chong-kwon / Senior Spokesperson, People Power Party: It has now been revealed that he used his position to lobby in an illicit manner. He is an unsuitable figure for the role of Minister of Justice.]

When the news of his stay of indictment became belatedly known in February of last year, nominee Kim filed a constitutional complaint, stating, "It was simply relaying a civil complaint, and no money or valuables were received."

[Kim Seung-won / Justice Minister Nominee (February of last year): I will fight to the end against clumsy legal tricks and the petty political games of the prosecution to correct the falsehoods.]

When SBS asked about the allegations, nominee Kim's side responded yesterday, "Please ask when the hearing preparation team is up and running." Meanwhile, Judiciary Committee Chair Seo Young-kyo defended the nominee, stating, "This is a case where the prosecution should have dropped it with a non-indictment decision, but instead they brazenly issued a stay of indictment."

(Video reporting: Lee Seung-hwan, Shin Dong-hwan | Video editing: Won Hyeong-hee, Design: Kim Han-gil, Source: Kukmin Ilbo)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.