Cho Kuk calls Han Dong-hoon "Crown Prince of Yoon Government"... Heo Eun-ah says "Cho's Double Standards Ongoing"

Jokuk "Han Dong-hoon is the Wang Minister and Crown Prince of the Yoon Seok-yeol Government"

Former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] On the 14th, former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk criticized Han Dong-hoon, the Deputy Director of the Judicial Research and Training Institute, whom President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol appointed as the first Minister of Justice, likening him to the "Crown Prince of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration." In response, the People Power Party retorted, "If Han is the 'Crown Prince,' then is Cho Kuk the 'Zhi Lu Wei Ma' figure 'Zhao Gao'?"

'Zhi Lu Wei Ma' originates from the "Records of the Grand Historian" (Shiji), in the "Annals of Qin Shi Huang," where the eunuch Zhao Gao deceived the emperor by calling a deer a horse, manipulating truth and falsehood at will.

Heo Eun-ah, the chief spokesperson for the People Power Party, wrote on her Facebook on the same day, "Former Minister Cho Kuk pointed to Han as the 'Crown Prince' of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration," adding, "He cited the abolition of the Office of Civil Affairs and the authority of the Minister of Justice as the basis." She pointed out, "It seems he has forgotten that he himself was the Minister of Justice who came from the Office of Civil Affairs."

Earlier, former Minister Cho posted on Facebook in the morning, criticizing, "Han Dong-hoon is not just any Minister of Justice. He is the king (wang) minister and the Crown Prince of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration."

He described Han as "the closest confidant among the president's inner circle" and "the Minister of Justice who concurrently holds the soon-to-be-abolished Office of Civil Affairs." He continued, "As the new head of the 'Yoon Seok-yeol line' within the prosecution, he is a Minister of Justice who can conduct unofficial investigations without leaving records," and "He holds the authority over prosecution personnel appointments and, due to the abolition of the Office of Civil Affairs, also has the power to vet high-ranking officials in other ministries."

He further stated that if the newly established "Serious Crime Investigation Agency" or the "Korean FBI," created after the separation of investigation and prosecution, is placed under the Ministry of Justice, Han would also be the Minister of Justice overseeing it. Regardless of the success of the separation of investigation and prosecution, he said Han would have the authority to activate a "permanent special prosecutor" (for example, a special prosecutor targeting Lee Jae-myung's Daejang-dong case).

Han Dong-hoon, Deputy Director of the Judicial Research and Training Institute, who has been nominated as Minister of Justice, is listening to the second cabinet announcement of President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol at the briefing room of the Presidential Transition Committee in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 13th. Photo by Transition Committee Press Corps

In response, Spokesperson Heo said, "I will apply former Minister Cho's claims to himself," describing him as "the true confidant among confidants, the Minister of Justice who served as the Office of Civil Affairs chief, who holds prosecution personnel authority and, as a former Office of Civil Affairs official, also conducted personnel vetting of high-ranking officials in other ministries."

He added, "Zhao Gao, a representative treacherous official in Chinese history, after Qin Shi Huang's death, enthroned the emperor and took control of court ministers, deceiving the emperor by calling a deer a horse and wielding arbitrary power," and said, "If Han is the 'Crown Prince,' then is former Minister Cho the 'Zhao Gao'? The ongoing phenomena of 'Cho Jeok-Cho' (Cho's enemy is Cho), 'Cho Ro Nam Bul' (Cho + double standards), and 'Cho Man Dae Jang Gyeong' (Cho + Tripitaka Koreana) seem to be continuing."

Kim Yong-tae, a Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, also posted on Facebook, saying, "Wasn't former Minister Cho the Crown Prince among the Crown Princes of the Moon Jae-in administration?" He added, "One difference is that former Minister Cho became a symbol of double standards, causing the public to feel relative deprivation and anger, whereas Han is receiving national trust as a 'righteous prosecutor.'"

He continued, "It is simply absurd that former Minister Cho, who was Moon Jae-in's king minister and who failed to empathize with the people's pain and was quick to defend by saying he 'owes a debt of gratitude' to former Minister Cho, is now making such remarks about Han," and criticized, "Do not forget that the downfall of the Moon Jae-in administration began with the double standards of Crown Prince Cho Kuk."