The People Power Party raised allegations that Presidential Secretariat First Aide Kim Hyun-ji, a closest aide to President Lee Jae-myung, was linked to the Gyeonggi Dongbu Alliance, a "Kim Il Sung–following group." It also claimed that Kim took part in the raid on the Seongnam City Council, for which the president was fined 500,000 won, forming a "criminal community."
People Power Party lawmaker Park Jeong-hun held a press conference at the National Assembly briefing room on the morning of the 14th and said, "We confirmed as fact the allegation that Kim is linked to the Gyeonggi Dongbu Alliance, a Kim Il Sung–following group."
The Gyeonggi Dongbu Alliance is known as the main faction of the Unified Progressive Party, which was dissolved as an unconstitutional party in 2014 over an insurrection-incitement case. In particular, the Gyeonggi Dongbu Alliance is also referred to as the group of former lawmaker Lee Seok-ki, who led the insurrection-incitement case.
Park said, "In the 2010 local elections, President Lee unified candidacies with former Unified Progressive Party lawmaker Kim Mi-hee and won," adding, "Since then, questions have been continually raised about what relationship President Lee has with the Gyeonggi Dongbu Alliance, but he has not made his position clear on this."
He went on to explain, "If you look at the written judgment in Kim's election law case, the husband of former lawmaker Kim is Baek Seung-woo, a core figure in the Gyeonggi Dongbu Alliance," adding, "Kim visited a dining gathering to campaign and paid for the meal, for which she was indicted on charges of violating the election law, and Deputy Minister Kim was deeply involved in this violation."
Park also said, "(In the judgment) it states, 'Kim Hyun-ji, who is well acquainted with defendant Kim Mi-hee while engaging in activities of social organizations in Seongnam' and 'Defendant Kim Mi-hee appears to have come to visit the restaurant by the chance relay of information from Kim Hyun-ji (and Jeong Hyeong-ju),'" adding, "Moreover, Deputy Minister Kim gave testimony favorable to co-defendant lawmaker Kim Mi-hee of the Unified Progressive Party, playing a decisive role in her sentence reduction."
He continued, "It is chilling that Deputy Minister Kim, regarded as the most powerful among the power brokers in the Lee Jae-myung administration, is linked to the Gyeonggi Dongbu Alliance, a Kim Il Sung–following group," adding, "Because this could connect the control tower of the Republic of Korea and North Korea, our main enemy, a thorough fact-finding is necessary."
There was also a claim that Deputy Minister Kim participated in the raid on the Seongnam City Council, for which President Lee received a fine for obstruction of special official duties.
Park stressed, "(According to the judgment) defendant Kim Hyun-ji, in collusion with defendant Lee Jae-myung and others, called city council members leaving after finishing deliberation on a local government ordinance in the hallway in front of the Seongnam City Council with vulgar terms, blocked their way, and pushed with her body, preventing entry and exit for three hours," adding, "Through this judgment, it is also confirmed that (the president and Deputy Minister Kim) were a criminal community."
The Democratic Party countered that Park's claims were a distortion of facts and a "color offensive." It argued that it is hard to conclude a person's ideology solely because they know a particular individual.
Democratic Party floor spokesperson Kim Hyun-jeong said, "Park brought out a judgment from 20 years ago, sprinkled it with the seasoning of demagoguery, and held a press conference as if it were a new menu, but he could not hide the stench," adding, "Based on a single sentence in the judgment that says 'knows,' the logical leap of linking Deputy Minister Kim to a 'Kim Il Sung–following group' is truly astonishing."
She added, "Public support for the Lee Jae-myung administration is high, and because they cannot find grounds to criticize its practical policies, they pulled out the easiest ingredient, 'color-ism,'" emphasizing, "Even the color-ism whose expiration date passed long ago—the public has long been fed up with politics that summon the ghosts of the past."