Kim Min-seok, leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, said concerns about the nomination of Kim Ji-yong as the first head of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency should be raised through internal party channels, warning that "if such views are expressed publicly without going through those channels, how would we be any different from the opposition?"
Speaking on the Democratic Party's YouTube program "Minty 07" on the 22nd, Kim said members of the ruling party, "especially those at the level of lawmakers, should voice their views on personnel matters by raising the issue within the party." He added that it was preferable to "make the case internally," noting that "the route to the president can run through the senior presidential secretary for political affairs, through the floor leadership, through the party or through a standing committee."
Kim said questions raised during the vetting process are not always grounded in verified facts. "When someone points out that a certain person has this or that problem, it turns out fairly often that the claim was based on mistaken rumor or hearsay once it was screened in the actual vetting process," he said. "That is all the more reason why raising issues within the ruling party must be done with greater care, and why it is better to go through the internal process I mentioned first."
He also urged caution about publicly naming specific individuals. "Matters involving people are extremely delicate," Kim said. "It is better to raise them as questions of principle. Pointing the finger at a specific person tends to be difficult."
"Within the ruling party, we should talk it through fully, but once a final conclusion is reached, we respect the judgment and conclusion of the person who holds the appointment authority," he said. "If you cannot do that, you should not be in the ruling party."
On criticism that crosses lines drawn within the party, Kim said: "When it goes too far, I believe the party should point that out and establish its own principles and discipline."
When the host cited a viewer comment calling for Rep. Kim Yong-min — who had publicly urged that the nomination be withdrawn — to be removed from the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, Kim said: "You mentioned taking him off the standing committee. If something is indeed out of line, that would be one of several possible options." He added that he was "speaking in those terms to help explain the matter of principle."
Rep. Kim Yong-min, speaking at the National Assembly's press center on the 17th, called for the nomination to be withdrawn, arguing that "if the nominee, a pro-Yoon Suk-yeol prosecutor who led opposition to prosecution reform, becomes the agency's first chief, the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency could be neutralized." He then asked President Lee Jae-myung to "withdraw the nomination."
