PPP targets Cheong Wa Dae personnel system after Kim Seung-won withdrawal, calls for audit testimony from Kim Hyun-ji

The People Power Party on Monday called for accountability from Cheong Wa Dae over its personnel vetting system following the withdrawal of Kim Seung-won as justice minister nominee, urging that "the responsibility of the presidential personnel line and whether Chief of Staff Kim Hyun-ji was involved must be made clear."

PPP leader Jang Dong-hyeok made the remarks at a supreme council meeting held at the National Assembly that morning, saying, "Wasn't it Kim Hyun-ji — who seems to have a hand in everything — who was involved this time as well?"

Jang also turned his criticism on the Democratic Party, saying Kim Seung-won was someone the party had called a well-suited appointment. "That is the Democratic Party's standard," he said. "In reality, he is no better than a petty criminal who has committed every kind of offense."

He went on to say, "The problem is that they pushed ahead knowing full well how ugly the truth was. On the very day former aides delivered a petition to Cheong Wa Dae political affairs chief Hong Ik-pyo, the Democratic Party unilaterally adopted the confirmation hearing report."

Jang said Cheong Wa Dae must be held responsible for the personnel controversy triggered by Kim's withdrawal. "On the afternoon of the day the president held a press conference, the nominee met with former aides and demanded to know the contents of the petition, saying he had no intention of stepping down," he said. "Who told Kim Seung-won about that?"

He said that during a past case involving Assembly member Kim Byung-kee and political donation allegations, former Assembly member Lee Su-jin had submitted a petition to Kim Hyun-ji, who was then an aide to Democratic Party leader Lee Jae Myung. "That petition also ended up in Kim Byung-kee's hands," he said. "The same thing has happened through the same reporting chain."

Jang urged that investigations be launched immediately. "The responsibility of the presidential personnel line and whether Chief of Staff Kim Hyun-ji was involved must be established without fail," he said. "Kim Hyun-ji must be called to testify at this year's national audit."

Floor Leader Jeong Jeom-sik also directed sharp criticism at the government. "The cause of this unprecedented personnel disaster lies with the president," he said. "The top criterion for justice minister has become erasing the president's trial record."

Jeong listed cases of ministerial nominees who had withdrawn under the Lee Jae Myung administration and said the government must be held accountable. "We have confirmed that even after the withdrawals of Lee Jin-suk, Kang Sun-woo and Lee Hye-hoon, the Lee Jae Myung administration showed absolutely no reflection on its personnel vetting system," he said.

The PPP leadership said it would pursue the designation of Kim Hyun-ji as a witness at the national audit and seek to resolve the allegations through national audits, parliamentary investigations and a special prosecutor. Jeong said the party would push to have Kim Hyun-ji and Jeong Jin-sang, former head of the Democratic Party's political coordination office, called as witnesses. "We demand the Democratic Party's cooperation," he added.

Chief Spokesperson Park Sung-hoon told reporters after the meeting that "there are allegations that the Seongnam line, including Kim Hyun-ji, is behind the flawed policies and personnel decisions being made right now." He said the party intended to "push through various legal and institutional measures, including a special prosecutor, to properly investigate the public's concerns."

Meanwhile, the PPP expressed skepticism over President Lee Jae Myung's remarks at a press conference Friday about not seeking a second term. Jang said that while the president claimed he had no intention of seeking re-election, "later he will insist, 'I said I had no intention of running again — did I say I definitely wouldn't?'"

"Three months ago he said jeonse — a long-term rental deposit system — was private financing and that its disappearance would be normalization, and then turned around and said, 'Did I say jeonse should disappear?'" Jang said. "What citizen would take President Lee Jae Myung at his word?"

The party plans to hold a public accountability rally titled "Report to the Nation on the Failures of the Lee Jae Myung Administration" on Tuesday. Park said the event would serve as "an opportunity to attack the Lee Jae Myung government's failures across policy areas," adding that it was designed to bring together the many scattered issues into a single public forum.

He added that numerous problems had piled up, including those involving real estate, stocks and a special prosecutor to drop charges, and called the latest cabinet reshuffle "the opening shot of President Lee Jae Myung's lame-duck period." He expressed hope that "the public anger that coalesces at the rally will be carried to dinner tables across the country during the Chuseok holiday."