Kim Seung-won's Confirmation Hearing to Proceed With Zero Witnesses as Democratic Party Rejects Requests

[Anchor]

The upcoming confirmation hearing for Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won next week will ultimately be held without a single witness. As the Democratic Party refused to adopt witnesses, the nominee will be vetted without the businesswoman or the startup founder linked to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety solicitation allegations. Democratic Party Representative Seo Young-kyo even made the absurd claim that the cabinet nominee himself serves as the witness.

Reporting by Ha Jeongyeon.

[Reporter]

Rival party lawmakers clashed all day yesterday (the 9th) over the issue of adopting witnesses for the National Assembly confirmation hearing of Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won.

With no agreement reached by midnight yesterday, the adoption deadline, it ultimately resulted in a hearing without witnesses.

The Democratic Party completely rejected the 44 witnesses demanded by the People Power Party regarding allegations including the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety solicitation, arguing that the case had concluded with a disposition of suspension of indictment.

[Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker (Yesterday): Why can they not testify in the National Assembly? Leaving these people out and proceeding? Then the hearing is simply an explanation, not verification.]

[Kim Dong-ah / Democratic Party Lawmaker (Yesterday): I believe it is wrong to drag back up and discuss in this sacred National Assembly a case that has already been closed and concluded.]

Amid criticisms of a toothless hearing, National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee Chairperson Seo Young-kyo, belonging to the Democratic Party, openly made claims such as, "Going without witnesses is a normal confirmation hearing."

[Seo Young-kyo / Chairperson of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee (Democratic Party Lawmaker, Yesterday): The ministerial nominee becomes the witness. Countless people can just ask questions there. Is the boat heading up a mountain?]

However, back in 2022 during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, Chairperson Seo, who was then the Chairperson of the Public Administration and Security Committee, stated ahead of the confirmation hearing for Interior and Safety Minister nominee Lee Sang-min that "witness questioning is an essential procedure."

[Seo Young-kyo / Chairperson of the Public Administration and Security Committee (Democratic Party Lawmaker, April 2022): Witness questioning at National Assembly confirmation hearings can be said to be an essential procedure for objectively verifying a public official nominee's capability and morality to perform public duties.]

Looking at precedents for Justice Minister confirmation hearings, 11 and 4 witnesses were adopted respectively during the past confirmation hearings for former Justice Minister nominees Cho Kuk and Han Dong-hoon.

Meanwhile, out of 25 prime minister and cabinet nominee confirmation hearings held under the Lee Jae-myung administration, as many as 18 hearings had zero witnesses.

Criticism is growing that pushing through witness-free, toothless hearings under the excuse of rival party confrontations undermines the significance of the confirmation hearing system, which is to verify public officials in front of the public.

(Camera: Kim Yong-woo, Video Editing: Jang Hyun-ki, Design: Lee Ga-jin)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.