The Kyunghyang Shinmun says that after the parliamentary audit, Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok must resolve a parliamentary investigation of Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae, a ‘manufactured indictment’ special counsel bill and the Shincheonji allegations. With his 100th day in office about 20 days away, falling party ratings and leadership doubts add to the pressure. Separately, as of mid-October reports, appointments to key presidential posts such as chief of staff were dragging on.
According to Kyunghyang on the 1st, the Democratic Party plans to submit a request for a parliamentary investigation of Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae at the plenary session on the 5th. The detailed plan setting purpose and scope could be adopted as early as next week; it needs a majority of all members (150), so the ruling party can pass it alone. The scope is still being decided, with topics floated including his conduct during the December 3 martial law, the May remand ruling in President Lee Jae-myung's election law case while a candidate, and alleged misuse of business and activity funds.
광고 문의 · 300×250The special counsel bill covers the president's own case, and Judiciary Committee chair Seo Young-kyo said it would be tabled this week. Kyunghyang expects it to remove a special counsel's power to cancel indictments, which Lee requested on September 18. The opposition is expected to resist strongly, and some inside the party doubt a bill far from everyday concerns will win public support. The opposition's specific arguments were not confirmed in the report.
Shincheonji allegations and a shaky leadership
The third hurdle is Shincheonji. According to Kyunghyang, Kim raised allegations of mass party enrollment by the group in July and made them one axis of the contest at the August 17 convention. His rival, former leader Chung Chung-rae, and his allies objected strongly. The party will report its internal review at this week's caucus, and police are also investigating.
Views inside and outside the party differ. A senior lawmaker suggested sorting ‘hot’ from ‘cold’ issues while police investigate. Chung said on a pro-Chung YouTube channel that the leadership would be judged around the 100-day mark and that he was weighing his next move, and a first-term lawmaker said Kim should set aside presidential ambitions and focus on the party. Kim's side of the argument was not confirmed in the report.
A vacuum in the presidential office
Appointments at the presidential office are also delayed. Dailian reported on October 12 that chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik offered to resign on September 21 to take responsibility for two successive failed minister nominees, yet no decision or successor had been announced, and the justice minister and national police chief posts were vacant. The presidential office said it was inappropriate to comment on personnel matters. We could not confirm whether any appointments have been made since.