Serious doubts have arisen against Prime Minister nominee Kim Yong-joon due to real estate speculation and draft irregularities involving him and his family.
It’s quite embarrassing and disappointing that the proposed appointment of the former Constitutional Court chief doesn’t warrant optimism because he was seen as a safe choice due to his dignified bearing and high moral standards, at a confirmation hearing.
Above all, Kim, 75, is suspected of buying vast areas of land in metropolitan areas, including Seoul, in the 1970s and 1980s to reap windfall gains through land speculation.
He is accused of evading taxes throughout this process.
In 1993, when he disclosed his assets as a Supreme Court justice, Kim said his four-member family, including his wife and two sons, owned assets worth about 2.9 billion won, 1.8 billion won of which was held by his two sons in the form of properties. One of the two properties was a house in Seocho-dong, southern Seoul, which was purchased by both sons in 1975 when they were 8 and 6 years old. The house is currently valued at 5 billion won.
The other property ― a 73,388-square-meter forest land in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province ― was purchased by the elder son in 1974. Most egregious is a reported testimony that the prime minister-designate looked around the land before buying it. Kim explained that his wealthy mother had bought the properties for his two sons, but he still can’t avoid criticism of having remained a spectator in real estate speculation involving his family members as a high-ranking public servant.
Kim’s two sons ― now in their mid-40s ― were exempted from military service, one for being underweight and the other for having gout. It’s questionable, too, how they were able to avoid conscription apparently due to the most serious reasons used to dodge the draft back then.
The Prime Minister’s Office, which is preparing for the hearing scheduled for early next month, is reportedly confident of defusing conscription suspicions, saying there was nothing illegal. But the office is in trouble with obtaining documents related to the real estate transactions in question.
Given that President-elect Park Geun-hye cited the rule of law and principles as reasons for nominating Kim, it would be all but impossible for him to perform his duty properly without the raised suspicions being addressed fully. Therefore, the oldest prime minister nominee will have to be vetted thoroughly at the hearing.
We have strong doubts about Park’s excessive secrecy in appointments and screening system. The successful launch of a new administration should not be sacrificed by a flawed vetting process.