The ruling and opposition parties' clash over the qualifications of Yong Hye-in, nominee for Minister of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, widened on the 5th with allegations raised against Kim Hyun-ji, the presidential secretary for the First Lady's office at the Blue House and considered a close aide to President Lee Jae-myung. The People Power Party argued that Secretary Kim may have been involved in Yong's selection and her refusal to resign her proportional-representation seat, while the Democratic Party of Korea dismissed it as an unfounded conspiracy theory.
The controversy began with comments on YouTube by Seo Yong-joo, head of the Mac Politics and Society Research Institute and a former standing deputy spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Korea. On a broadcast the previous day, Seo, referring to Yong's nomination, said, "The personnel line is Kim Hyun-ji, you know." The People Power Party cited the remark to suggest Secretary Kim may have been involved in the presidential personnel process.
People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok said on Facebook that day, "I wondered from the moment President Lee suddenly named Yong Hye-in as a Minister nominee," adding, "This is not a Yong Hye-in who just appeared out of nowhere."
Aiming at Secretary Kim, Jang described it as a "leftist cartel build-up," adding, "Refusing to resign the proportional-representation seat—could the Blue House really not have known? Secretary Kim would have known. Since it's about looking after the 'organization,' there would have been an attempt to turn a blind eye."
The People Power Party kept up its offensive not only against Yong but also over the broader recent Cabinet reshuffle. Chief spokesperson Park Sung-hoon, citing alleged improper solicitations by Kim Seung-won, nominee for Minister of the Ministry of Justice, labeled this second-term reshuffle "the worst ever."
In a commentary, Park said, "This goes beyond a personnel failure to a personnel catastrophe and manipulation," arguing it was "a signal flare that President Lee's lame-duck period has already begun." He then demanded the withdrawal of unfit nominees and an apology to the public.
People Power Party lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun also took issue with Secretary Kim's name repeatedly surfacing in the personnel dispute. Yoon said, "Why does the name Kim Hyun-ji, who is not part of the official personnel line, keep coming up in controversies related to appointments?" adding, "If there is any private interference outside the official personnel line, cut it off immediately."
The Democratic Party of Korea squarely refuted the People Power Party's claims. In a written briefing, spokesperson Lee Yong-woo said of Seo's remarks, "The person involved explained it was a joke, and the broadcaster also clarified the facts that personnel matters at the presidential office are handled by the senior presidential secretary for personnel affairs."
Aimed at leader Jang, he said, "Stop conspiracy-theory politics immediately." He criticized, "The method of turning a denied joke into a 'confession' and completing a grand conspiracy by slapping on colorist labels like 'shadow power,' 'Gyeonggi Eastern Alliance,' and 'leftist cartel' is a mirror image of delusions about a rigged election."