The presidential office said on the 1st that allegations surrounding Kim Ji-yong, the nominee to head the newly created Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, are "not serious enough to deny him the chance to explain himself at a National Assembly confirmation hearing," signaling it will proceed with the confirmation process as planned. The office said additional vetting turned up nothing that differed from its earlier findings and that it will submit a request for a confirmation hearing to the National Assembly within days.
Sung Ki-hong, senior presidential secretary for public relations and communication, said at a briefing that day: "There was a process of checking the additional allegations raised, but the additional vetting found nothing that differs from the initial findings." He added, "Some of the allegations raised in certain quarters were either untrue or amounted to vague speculation."
The presidential office pushed back in particular against claims labeling Kim a prosecutor loyal to former President Yoon Suk-yeol, calling such characterizations "entirely inaccurate." It cited his promotion to chief prosecutor during the Moon Jae-in administration and his order, while serving as head of the criminal division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, to reopen an investigation into a case involving Choi Eun-soon, Yoon's mother-in-law. The office also stressed that Kim was transferred to a provincial post after the Yoon administration took office and eventually left the prosecution service.
The presidential office also rebutted point by point allegations involving a statement calling for reconsideration of disciplinary action against Yoon, the abuse-of-authority assault case involving former senior prosecutor Jung Jin-woong, the case of former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-eui and the forensic controversy in the Channel A case, saying Kim was either not directly involved or had in fact opposed indictment.
Addressing opposition within parts of the ruling bloc to appointing a former prosecutor to lead the agency, Sung said, "We cannot exclude all prosecutors from state functions just because some bad prosecutors existed." He added, "That is not reform but closer to destruction in the name of reform." He went on to say, "The commissioner's investigative command capability and qualifications are very important for the successful establishment of the agency," emphasizing Kim's investigative expertise and commitment to prosecution reform.
The presidential office plans to submit the request for Kim's confirmation hearing to the National Assembly within days.
