President Park Geun-hye’s pick for prime minister is facing a tough parliamentary confirmation hearing on Tuesday as opposition lawmakers are poised to grill the nominee over his alleged ethical lapses.
Lee Wan-koo, a former floor leader of Park’s ruling Saenuri Party, is under pressure to withdraw from consideration for the country’s No. 2 political job over allegations that he exerted influence on media to stop them from carrying negative reports about him.
He has also suggested at a recent lunch with reporters that he could influence personnel reshuffles at media companies.
His reported comments have sparked national outrage in a country where people fought past military-backed governments to gain press freedom.
Lee has denied the allegations over media control and apologized for using what he described as rough words.
The nominee is also accused of speculating in real estate, plagiarizing his doctoral thesis and intentionally omitting parts of his annual wealth report.
He acknowledged that his thesis did not meet the strict ethical standards of today when it comes to citations, but argued that he still wrote the paper independently using his own data and analytical methods.
The developments could cast a pall over Lee’s confirmation hearing that is scheduled to end on Wednesday, a day before the parliament holds a vote to decide whether to endorse the nomination.
Moon Jae-in, the new leader of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy, has raised question whether the nominee is fit for the job.
In South Korea, the prime minister is the only Cabinet post that requires parliamentary confirmation. The prime minister is the second-highest position after president, but the job has been limited to a largely ceremonial role as power is concentrated heavily in the president.
Outgoing Prime Minister Chung Hong-won will remain in the job until Lee is confirmed by the National Assembly, where Park’s conservative party commands a majority. (Yonhap)
