Jung Chung-rae, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, said on the 26th regarding the controversy over floor leader Kim Byung-kee's alleged abuse of power related to his private life, "We are watching this situation with great seriousness," and added, "We are truly sorry and remorseful to the people that such an incident occurred. We apologize."
At a press briefing at the National Assembly that day, Jung received a question about Kim and said, "Yesterday (on the 25th), the floor leader called me and we spoke," adding, "(Kim) said he felt sorry to the public and party members, and that he also felt sorry to me." Jung said, "He also said he would整理 and announce his position in a few days."
Jung said, "The position of floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea is an elected post chosen by party members and lawmakers, and it is indeed a very weighty position," adding, "So I believe he is likely agonizing over this." Jung added, "Since floor leader Kim says he will announce a整理ed position in a few days, I will wait until then."
The floor leader is locked in a mud fight with a former aide. Allegations have surfaced around Kim and his family of receiving airline hotel vouchers, demanding VIP protocol at an airport, and requesting family treatment at a university hospital. Kim's side believes a former aide is behind these allegations.
In a post on Facebook the previous day, he mentioned a former staffer who was dismissed by authority in December last year and said, "They are posing as a whistleblower," adding, "Words, requests, and help exchanged in trust have been disguised under the name of 'abuse of power.'" He then disclosed part of the chat history from a Telegram room where former staffers were present.
In response, the staffers said, "That conversation was obtained after the floor leader's wife secretly installed the youngest aide's account on her phone without the person's consent," and filed a criminal complaint against Kim and others for violating the Protection of Communications Secrets Act and for defamation under the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection. As both sides continue exposés and lawsuits, the situation is turning into a mud fight.
Public opinion is also negative within the ruling bloc regarding the controversy surrounding the floor leader. Democratic Party lawmaker Park Gee-won said, "Before blaming the conflict with staffers, it would be good to reflect on one's own conduct."