Presidential Office: "Special Inspector to be Appointed if Ruling and Opposition Parties Agree... An Issue to be Resolved Within the Parties"

Indication of Appointment Upon Resolution of Internal Party Disagreements

President Yoon Suk-yeol is meeting and conversing with Han Dong-hoon, the leader of the People Power Party, on the lawn in front of the Fine Glass at the Yongsan Presidential Office in Seoul on the 21st.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Presidential Office stated on the 23rd regarding the Special Inspector, "If the ruling and opposition parties agree and bring a candidate, we will appoint them," indicating the intention to appoint once differences within the parties are resolved.

A Presidential Office official met with reporters at the Yongsan Presidential Office that afternoon and said, "As we have mentioned several times, if the ruling and opposition parties come to an agreement, we will appoint," adding, "There were various discussions within the parties just this morning, so we will watch how things develop."

When asked by reporters whether the Special Inspector would be appointed if the ruling and opposition parties agree without recommendations for the North Korean Human Rights Foundation board members, the official responded, "That is not something we will answer," and added, "The ruling party is pushing to link it with the North Korean Human Rights Foundation board member issue, so it is a matter to be resolved within the party."

The Special Inspector is a vice-minister-level official who inspects misconduct by the president's relatives. The National Assembly recommends three candidates for the Special Inspector to the president, who then nominates one of them to be appointed after a National Assembly confirmation hearing.

On the 21st, People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon proposed the appointment of a Special Inspector during a meeting with President Yoon Suk-yeol, but President Yoon mentioned the issue of recommending board members for the North Korean Human Rights Foundation and responded, "The Special Inspector is a matter for consultation between the ruling and opposition parties."

That morning, Leader Han announced plans to proceed with the Special Inspector recommendation procedure as a solution to the Kim Geon-hee issue, but in response, Floor Leader Choo Kyung-ho expressed a differing view, stating that the Special Inspector recommendation is an "internal parliamentary matter" and that gathering opinions from party members should come first.