Prime Minister Han Sung-sook to Check Legality and Leak Source of Han Dong-hoon Transcript Controversy

Prime Minister Han Sung-sook stated today (the 9th) regarding independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon's consecutive disclosures of transcripts related to allegations of "new drug solicitation" involving Minister of Justice nominee Kim Seung-won, "I will instruct related agencies to closely check the circumstances of the leak, whether there were any legal violations, and the factual truth."

Prime Minister Han made the remarks during the National Assembly interpellation session after Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Hae-shik pointed out, "The Prime Minister should immediately launch an inspection and investigation to reveal the source and leakage path of the [disclosed] investigative materials, punish those responsible, and reform the investigative information management system."

She then emphasized, "If non-public investigative materials were leaked to the outside and utilized without going through legitimate procedures, it is a very grave matter."

When lawmaker Lee asked about the government's stance on whether a constitutional amendment for extending or serving consecutive presidential terms would apply to the incumbent president, Prime Minister Han replied, "It is clearly specified that matters related to constitutional amendment do not apply to the president in office at that time," adding, "I think our stance on such matters has already been clearly expressed."

Regarding the promotion of a police reform organization under the Prime Minister's Secretariat, Prime Minister Han explained, "We are consulting with various ministries to launch it as soon as possible," and "The Police Reform Committee currently reports to the Office for Government Policy Coordination, and finally comes to me for review."

Regarding Democratic Party lawmaker Chae Hyun-il's inquiry concerning the controversy over Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Cho Hee-dae's nomination of Supreme Court justice candidates, Prime Minister Han said, "I don't think it is appropriate for me to comment on matters related to the Chief Justice's authority," but added, "I think there was some infringement upon matters related to re-nomination and the president's appointment power."

In connection with this, when People Power Party lawmaker Park Hyung-soo asked, "What is the basis for the presidential office's demand for re-nomination?", Prime Minister Han responded, "It was an inevitable measure to ensure the president's appointment power is respected and exercised."

When Democratic Party lawmaker Kwak Sang-un expressed concerns over the police's monopoly on investigative powers, Prime Minister Han explained, "In fact, no system can be 100% perfect," and "It is very important to properly implement follow-up measures, and the Prime Minister's Secretariat will also actively step up and focus on resolving issues well."

Furthermore, regarding the controversy over the "May 18 seminar" hosted by People Power Party lawmaker Lee Jin-sook, she reaffirmed her stance, saying, "I felt truly devastated," and "I think truly appropriate measures are necessary for undermining the basic spirit [of the May 18 democratization movement]."

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