Nominee repeats call to focus on special prosecutor probe; vows to stabilize prosecution office
Justice minister nominee Lee Yong-cheol reaffirmed Wednesday that it is time to focus on uncovering the truth in the criminal cases against President Lee Jae Myung, stopping short of ruling out the possibility of ordering the withdrawal of charges. Lee also said he would observe ongoing fact-finding efforts — including a special prosecutor investigation expected to take shape soon — without prejudice or preconceptions.
Lee made the remarks at 8:39 a.m. Wednesday as he arrived at the confirmation hearing preparation office set up at the Seoul Immigration Office in Songpa-gu, responding to reporters who asked whether he would be willing to exercise prosecutorial direction authority depending on the outcome of the fact-finding process. It was his first day reporting to the preparation office since his nomination on Friday.
"As I have already said, my position remains unchanged — now is the time to focus on uncovering the truth, and everything else must follow the law and principles," Lee said. "I do not think it is appropriate to offer opinions based on speculation and prejudice at a time when the fact-finding process has not even begun." He added: "I have not been part of any group advocating for the withdrawal of charges, nor have I served as defense counsel in any case subject to the special prosecutor. I will observe the fact-finding process going forward without any prejudice or preconceptions."
Lee, who was serving as head of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) at the time, made similar comments to reporters on Monday on his way into the DAPA office, saying the National Assembly had enacted a special prosecutor act and that it was now right to focus solely on uncovering the truth, with everything else to be handled according to law and principle. Those remarks were widely interpreted as leaving open the possibility of ordering the withdrawal of charges in the criminal cases against President Lee. The comments stood in contrast to those of his predecessors — former Justice Minister Jeong Seong-ho and former nominee Kim Seung-won, who withdrew before taking office — both of whom had explicitly ruled out such a move. Lee repeated the same position Wednesday on his first day at the preparation office.
Questions have also been raised about whether Lee's nomination is ultimately aimed at securing the withdrawal of charges against the president, given his long personal ties to Lee Jae Myung — including having worked at the same law firm — and his identification with the so-called "Seongnam line." The National Assembly, led by the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, has passed a special prosecutor act to investigate allegations of fabricated investigations and indictments by the prosecution, the National Intelligence Service, the Board of Audit and Inspection and other agencies under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.
A graduate of the 21st class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute, Lee is a former attorney who served as civil affairs secretary and legal affairs secretary at Cheong Wa Dae during the Participatory Government before becoming the inaugural deputy director of DAPA. Lee later served as president of the Seongnam Industry Promotion Foundation, a city-affiliated body, during President Lee Jae Myung's tenure as Seongnam mayor, and most recently served as DAPA director under the Lee Jae Myung administration.
On the special prosecutor investigation into alleged fabricated indictments, Lee said it was "not appropriate for a nominee to evaluate" the decision, as it was made by legislators. Lee was similarly guarded on the investigations into the Daejang-dong development and SBW North Korea remittance cases, saying he had "not been sufficiently briefed" and that it was "not appropriate to offer an assessment from my current position."
The Seongnam Industry Promotion Foundation, which Lee headed, has previously faced allegations of hiring irregularities — specifically, that children of individuals who helped President Lee in his mayoral election campaign were hired as foundation employees. On this, Lee said he would "explain in detail matters related to my past personal record during the confirmation hearing process."
Lee said Wednesday that if given the opportunity to serve as minister, his top priority would be settling the new criminal justice system into place. "I will work closely with relevant agencies to ensure there are no gaps in responding to crime or inconveniences for the public during the transition," he said.
Lee added that he would work with the incoming head of the Public Prosecution Service to pursue fair personnel management and expand staffing in order to stabilize the organization and boost morale. "I will work to ensure the Public Prosecution Service upholds judicial justice through fair exercise of its indictment authority and establishes itself as a human rights protection body, including through the protection of victims," he said.
Legal circles have questioned whether Lee is suited to lead the ministry overseeing legal administration, pointing in part to his limited experience handling civil and criminal cases. Concerns have been raised in particular about whether he has the qualifications to serve as justice minister amid a sweeping transformation of the criminal justice system — one that saw the prosecution office abolished on Oct. 2 and replaced by the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency and the Public Prosecution Service.
bell@heraldcorp.com
