Yoon Sang-hyun: "I Did Not Bring Materials to President Yoon... Reporting Is Out of the Question"

Yoon Sang-hyun "Kim Young-sun Strategically Nominated According to Various Criteria"

In the June 2022 by-elections, Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun, who served as the People Power Party's nomination management committee chairman, denied allegations that he brought nomination management committee materials to then President-elect Yoon and reported to him, calling it "something that does not make sense."

On the morning of the 31st, after finishing a meeting with senior lawmakers at the National Assembly, Rep. Yoon told reporters, "In the history of the nomination management committee, there has never been a case where the committee materials were brought to the President-elect to report," emphasizing this point.

On the same morning, the Democratic Party of Korea released a recording of a phone call dated May 9, 2022, between President Yoon and Mr. Myung Tae-gyun, discussing the nomination of Rep. Kim Young-sun. In the recording, President Yoon said, "The nomination committee brought it to me, and since Kim Young-sun worked hard from the primary, I told them to give it to Kim Young-sun, but there are many complaints from the party." Mr. Myung responded, "I will never forget this lifelong favor. Thank you." This audio appears to be a file that Mr. Myung played to a third party, who then re-recorded it.

Following this report, the Presidential Office denied the allegations of interference in the nomination through a media notice, stating, "At that time, President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol neither received reports related to nominations from the nomination management committee nor gave any instructions regarding nominations," and added, "The decision-makers for nominations at that time were Party Leader Lee Jun-seok and Nomination Management Committee Chairman Yoon Sang-hyun," shifting responsibility.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Rep. Yoon said, "The very claim that the nomination committee brought the materials is untenable. There are 11 committee members including myself, so why would we bring it?" He dismissed the claim, saying, "Even the idea that a committee member brought (nomination documents to President Yoon) does not make sense logically."

When a reporter asked, "Since the President's voice was heard, did you contact the committee members at the time to verify the facts?" Rep. Yoon replied, "How would I know the facts? The nomination committee was disbanded over two years ago."

When asked if he had ever consulted with President Yoon or First Lady Kim Keon-hee, he denied it, saying, "I can say that First Lady Kim has absolutely no reason to talk about this," and "President Yoon has never given me such instructions."

Rep. Yoon also responded to a reporter's comment that there were internal disagreements about the nomination of former Rep. Kim Young-sun, saying, "There were people who supported someone other than former Rep. Kim, so it seems to have come out in that context," and explained that it was a strategic nomination based on various criteria.

He added, "You have to look at the overall context; it is misleading to jump to conclusions based on the recording. Among Yoon's core associates (Yoon Hae-gwan), there was someone who supported a candidate other than former Rep. Kim (for the National Assembly by-election in Changwon Changyi, Gyeongnam)," and said, "It was a matter of whether it was Kim Young-sun or Kim Jong-yang, and didn't candidate Kim Jong-yang also accept the decision? Many people express their opinions during nominations, and I listen to them."

Regarding the timing of the nomination confirmation, he explained, "One of the important nominations in the by-election was the nomination of candidate Yoo Young-ha for Daegu Suseong," and added, "We delayed the announcement after observing the situation with former President Park Geun-hye." He explained, "The announcement was made on May 10, 2022, the day of President Yoon's inauguration, and the decision was probably made the day before."