Party leader Kim orders dismissal of ethics watchdog deputy chief Kang Min-gu
Choi Min-hee calls for central party reform, citing damage to watchdog's standing
A text message alleging that allies of former Democratic Party of Korea leader Jung Chung-rae had interfered in personnel decisions at the party's ethics watchdog unit has gone public, sending ripples through the ruling camp. The Democratic Party is watching closely for signs that the controversy could deepen into a factional clash between supporters of Lee Jae Myung and those aligned with Jung.
The controversy erupted after a camera captured a Telegram message that Kang Min-gu, deputy chief of the party's ethics and inspection unit, sent to Supreme Council member Park Seon-won on Tuesday, the opening day of the regular National Assembly session. In the message, Kang wrote that "the Jung Chung-rae faction appears to be moving against Rep. Kim Ki-pyo," who heads the ethics unit, and asked Park to speak with the secretary-general, adding that he had not been contacted about reporting to party headquarters and that someone needed to "get there fast and take control."
The ethics and inspection unit monitors illegal conduct and misconduct by elected officials and senior party figures affiliated with the Democratic Party. As the controversy spread, Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok ordered Kang's immediate dismissal — just one day after Kang had been appointed on Monday. The party did not specify the grounds for the dismissal, though most analysts see it as directly tied to the text message controversy.
Supreme Council Chair Choi Min-hee, who is considered aligned with the Jung faction, wrote on Facebook on Wednesday that she viewed Kim's swift dismissal positively, though she did not know who Kang was. "But what are we going to do about the damage to the ethics unit's standing?" she asked, urging central party reform and questioning whether the unit could be trusted to avoid double standards and targeted investigations.
She added that the ethics and inspection unit was "the biggest victim of this exchange," saying the episode raised doubts about whether a body whose lifeblood is impartiality and independence could be run in such a partisan manner.
Choi also called on Kim to come up with measures to dispel suspicions that central party bodies, including the ethics unit, could be manipulated to serve the interests of a particular faction.
Park, the Supreme Council member who received the message, said the message was sent unilaterally by Kang and that she had no involvement in the matter.
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