Special Committee on Personnel Hearings Convenes Full Session
The National Assembly held a confirmation hearing for Kim Hocheol, the nominee for Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection, on December 29, but faced difficulties over the submission of documents. The ruling and opposition parties convened a full meeting of the Special Committee on Personnel Hearings for the appointment of the Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection at 10 a.m. that day.
The People Power Party demanded the submission of documents, claiming that nominee Kim was effectively boycotting the hearing. According to the People Power Party, as of December 28, out of 768 documents requested by the National Assembly, 375 were not submitted, citing reasons such as personal information. Bae Junyoung, the People Power Party member and opposition secretary of the special committee, stated, "I would like to ask whether the Board of Audit and Inspection can conduct audits without the submission of documents from the agencies under review," and warned, "If the documents are not submitted by the morning, the hearing will not proceed."
In contrast, the Democratic Party of Korea expressed regret, calling it a deliberate obstruction. Kim Seungwon, the Democratic Party member and secretary for the ruling party, said, "The absolute number of documents submitted is higher than under former Chairman Choi Jaehae," and added, "We should stop demanding documents for personal scrutiny or to find faults, and focus on policy-based verification."
At the hearing, the legitimacy of various policy audits conducted during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration became a key issue. The Democratic Party of Korea pressed questions about how the functions of the Board of Audit and Inspection would be normalized. On the other hand, the People Power Party focused on raising concerns about political neutrality. Nominee Kim previously served as Chairman of the National Police Commission and as President of Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun) during the Moon Jae-in administration.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Party of Korea plans to convene a plenary session on December 30, after the hearing, to process the motion to approve Kim's appointment.
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