{"id":8167,"date":"2026-10-12T10:48:58","date_gmt":"2026-10-12T10:48:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=8167"},"modified":"2026-10-12T10:48:58","modified_gmt":"2026-10-12T10:48:58","slug":"cover-story-president-spars-with-liberal-allies-over-investigation-body-chief-nomination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=8167","title":{"rendered":"[COVER STORY] President spars with liberal allies over investigation body chief nomination"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>4 Minute, 4 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>


\n<\/p>\n

\n
\"President<\/picture>
\n

President Lee Jae Myung attends a gathering with representatives of the Korean Residents Union in Japan, known as Mindan, and ethnic Koreans living in Japan to mark the organization\u2019s 80th anniversary at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-seog<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It is normal for a president to clash with members of opposition parties, especially those with different political inclinations, over reform measures.<\/p>\n

President Lee Jae Myung, however, is having an unusual conflict \u2014 one against members of his own party and other liberal figures. The conflict is over the nomination of Kim Ji-yong, a former prosecutor, to be the inaugural chief of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency (SCIA).<\/p>\n

The new investigative body was established as part of prosecutorial reform, dividing the prosecutors\u2019 office into SCIA in charge of probing serious crimes and the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) tasked with indicting suspects and prosecuting cases.<\/p>\n

The nomination on Sept. 8, however, turned the long-awaited prosecution reform into the focus of an increasingly bitter internal conflict, as hardliners from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), the minor liberal Rebuilding Korea Party (RKP) and elsewhere in the liberal bloc argue that his record of defending prosecutorial powers makes him unfit to serve as its inaugural chief.<\/p>\n

They also label Kim a loyalist of ousted prosecutor-turned-former President Yoon Suk Yeol, Lee\u2019s predecessor.<\/p>\n

\"From<\/picture>
\n

From left are Gyeonggi Gov. Choo Mi-ae, Rep. Kim Yong-min of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and Lim Eun-jung, chief of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency\u2019s (SCIA) Gwangju branch. Yonhap <\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The hardliners include Gyeonggi Gov. Choo Mi-ae and Rep. Kim Yong-min, who are members of the DPK, as well as RKP Rep. Park Eun-jung and SCIA’s Gwangju branch chief Lim Eun-jung, a former prosecutor who has openly supported the liberal bloc for years.<\/p>\n

Despite their objections, the president says Kim\u2019s investigative experience makes him well suited to establish the new agency and that a further review of his record found no problems with his selection.<\/p>\n

Lee has also stepped up his criticism of the hardliners, accusing them of pursuing personal interests under the banner of reform.<\/p>\n

“A reform should be a goal, and should not be a tool to get attention and attack somebody,” Lee wrote on social media on Oct. 4.<\/p>\n

But the critics stepped up their criticism.<\/p>\n

Choo repeatedly said Kim was close to Yoon, saying that when Yoon was the prosecutor general and at odds with then-liberal President Moon Jae-in, Kim took part in prosecutors’ collective actions to oppose Moon’s disciplinary actions against Yoon.<\/p>\n

She said Cheong Wa Dae\u2019s explanation that Kim was uninvolved in collective actions to defend Yoon was a lie, and has portrayed his nomination as a betrayal at a time when reform appeared close to completion.<\/p>\n

Lee then made counterattacks against Choo. <\/p>\n

On another social media post on Sunday, he criticized “people who enjoy every luxury at ordinary taxpayers\u2019 expense while readily cutting even small welfare budgets for those same people.” The remarks were widely interpreted as targeting Choo following a controversy over her provincial government’s welfare spending cuts, although he did not name her. <\/p>\n

Lim\u2019s opposition presents a different challenge, as she alleged that the nominee, when he was a prosecutor, ignored requests to investigate sexual assault allegations involving another prosecutor.<\/p>\n

As she continued criticizing Kim, who would become her boss if he is appointed, Minister of the Interior and Safety Yoon Ho-jung on Sunday ordered an inspection of Lim, saying the ministry would examine whether Lim had used her position for political activity.<\/p>\n

“It seems Lim is misunderstanding SCIA not as an organization to investigate but an organization to do politics,” the minister said. “I worry that the past wrong behaviors of prosecutors, who used to intervene in politics, may be repeated at the SCIA.”<\/p>\n

The dispute has widened to include disagreements over lawmakers\u2019 motives and their track records on reform.<\/p>\n

Kim Yong-min, a leading reform advocate in the DPK, argues that the nominee should himself be subject to reform and challenged Lee\u2019s account of his legislative proposals.<\/p>\n

Park of the RKP has likewise rejected suggestions of personal ambition.<\/p>\n

The RKP lawmaker, who helped investigate former President Yoon while serving as a justice ministry official, argues that Lee is drawing criticism because he has aligned himself with prosecutors she opposed. Park even wrote, “The Lee Jae Myung administration is eventually only a chapter of history.”<\/p>\n

\u201cThe latest clash shows that abolishing the old prosecution service has not settled disagreements over who should lead the new agency or how reform should be carried out,\u201d a law professor said on condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n

Against this backdrop, DPK Chairman Kim Min-seok expressed frustration with the arguments and urged party members to seek consultation through internal channels.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n\n

\n
\n \n
\n \n \"Happy\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Happy <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n \n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Sad\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Sad <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Excited\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Excited <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Sleepy\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Sleepy <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n \n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Angry\"\n <\/a>\n
Angry<\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Surprise\"\n <\/a>\n
Surprise<\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President Lee Jae Myung attends a gathering with representatives of the Korean Residents Union in Japan, known as Mindan, and ethnic Koreans living in Japan to mark the organization\u2019s 80th anniversary at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-seog It is normal for a president to clash with members of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_templately_pack_id":"","_templately_imported_at":"","_templately_source":"","_templately_import_session_id":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-korea","category-trending-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t