Confirmation Hearing on the 16th
Candidate Kang Minsu for Commissioner of the National Tax Service apologized on the 16th for referring to the Gwangju Democratization Movement as the "Gwangju Incident" in his master's thesis written over 30 years ago. Regarding concerns about conflicts of interest with his in-law's company, which has annual sales of around 800 billion KRW, he emphasized "tax administration enforcement based on law and principles."
On the same day, the National Assembly's Planning and Finance Committee held a confirmation hearing for candidate Kang.
In his opening remarks, candidate Kang stated, "I want to implement fair and reasonable tax administration with an impartial attitude while warmly embracing the pain of the people and taxpayers," adding, "I will devote my capabilities and passion to the National Tax Service’s core duties of securing national resources and fair taxation to create a 'National Tax Service recognized by the people for doing one thing well.'"
Kang Min-su, nominee for Commissioner of the National Tax Service, is delivering opening remarks at the confirmation hearing held by the National Assembly's Planning and Finance Committee on the 16th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@
The written questions and answers submitted prior to the confirmation hearing focused on controversies over historical awareness and concerns about conflicts of interest related to his in-law's company.
Opposition party lawmakers criticized, "The candidate used the term 'Gwangju Incident' instead of the '5.18 Democratization Movement' and referred to the military coup by the Chun Doo-hwan regime as the '12.12 Incident' in his master's thesis submitted in 1995. Isn't it reasonable to see this as reflecting the candidate’s actual historical awareness at the time?"
In response, candidate Kang explained, "I believe the 5.18 was a democratization movement resisting military dictatorship," and "I understand that the April 1997 Supreme Court full bench ruling defined the 12.12 as a military coup, that is, a 'military rebellion.'"
He continued, "Those expressions were directly quoted from reference materials and news articles from the time when I was a graduate student, and I regret that some quotations were insufficiently marked. I sincerely apologize for causing pain again to those who were hurt by the expressions in a thesis written over 30 years ago without deep reflection."
He also emphasized strict law enforcement without exceptions regarding his in-law’s company. The candidate’s in-law family owns the business group "Yuchang," which has annual sales of about 800 billion KRW. The candidate’s spouse has been continuously employed at Yuchang since 2010 and currently serves as the Vice President in charge of human resources for the company and its affiliates.
When Kim Youngjin, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party of Korea, pointed out concerns that conflicts of interest could arise if the candidate becomes the National Tax Service Commissioner, the final authority on tax administration including tax investigations related to the in-law’s company, candidate Kang replied, "If a conflict of interest situation arises as the Commissioner, I will neither receive reports nor give instructions related to it, and will immediately implement reporting and recusal measures according to relevant laws."
In response to a question from Cheon Haram, a lawmaker from the Reform New Party, asking, "What is your plan to resolve controversies regarding conflicts of interest with your in-law’s company upon assuming the office of National Tax Service Commissioner?" Kang said, "I have always been cautious throughout my 30 years of public service and have never pursued private interests or represented the interests of any particular group. I promise to continue to enforce tax administration fairly and impartially according to law and principles, and I will consider additional measures."
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