Kim Osu "Did not hide 5 months of experience... No connection with (Daejang-dong) case parties"
[Asia Economy Reporters Oh Ju-yeon, Geum Bo-ryeong] On the 18th, during the National Assembly audit, concerns were raised about the "intentional omission" regarding Kim Oh-soo, the Prosecutor General, having served as a legal advisor for Seongnam City before his appointment.
On that day, Yoon Han-hong, a member of the National Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee from the People Power Party, during the afternoon session of the audit, criticized Prosecutor General Kim, saying, "The Daejang-dong gate is being called the People Power Party gate, so shouldn’t the investigation be conducted properly?" and pointed out, "Prosecutor General Kim is too closely related to Seongnam City."
According to Yoon’s office, Kim did not list his experience as a legal advisor for Seongnam City in the personnel hearing request submitted during the confirmation hearing. For his career after stepping down as Vice Minister of Justice in April last year, he only noted his role as a legal advisor at the law firm Hwahaeon from September 2020 to May 3, 2021.
Recently, it was revealed belatedly that Prosecutor General Kim served as a legal advisor for Seongnam City from December 1 of last year to May 7 of this year, sparking controversy. Consequently, the opposition party has criticized the impartiality of the prosecution’s investigation into the Daejang-dong allegations.
Regarding Kim’s response that he served as a legal advisor for Seongnam City for five months, Yoon asked, "In any case, didn’t you do (legal advisory work)?" and added, "If you served as a legal advisor to contribute to the community, shouldn’t that be something to be proud of? So why did you hide it?"
When Kim denied having concealed the fact, Yoon retorted, "It was omitted from your resume."
Yoon also pointed out that Seongnam City Hall was excluded during the Central District Prosecutors’ Office’s search and seizure, saying, "They excluded the key department and even the secretariat. It was just a show of investigation." When he asked, "Have you ever met accountant Jung Young-hak?" Kim answered, "No." He also stated, "I have no connection with any parties involved in the (Daejang-dong) case."
Yoon said, "Seongnam City Hall is central to the Daejang-dong gate. Therefore, Prosecutor General Kim, who served as a legal advisor, should step away from this case due to a conflict of interest." He added, "Even former Prosecutor General Yoon was excluded from cases with even slight involvement," and concluded, "It is appropriate for Kim to voluntarily relinquish his authority to lead the investigation in this case. That is why the argument for a special prosecutor is valid."
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