Ruling party leader demands Yoon address concerns regarding first lady

The ruling party leader urged President Yoon Suk Yeol on Monday to address concerns surrounding first lady Kim Keon Hee by recommending her withdrawal from public activities, a personnel reshuffle and the appointment of a special inspector.

Han Dong-hoon, leader of the People Power Party (PPP), called for bold reforms in response to rising public discontent during his meeting with Yoon at the presidential office, Han’s chief secretary Park Jung-ha told reporters.

Han reiterated his proposals to resolve issues related to the first lady, including a reshuffle of presidential office personnel accused of wielding undue influence on state affairs, a halt to her public activities and efforts to clear up suspicions surrounding her. To push forward the reform measures, he emphasized the need for a special inspector, according to Park.

Han also expressed support for the Yoon administration’s reform agenda and key policies, stressing the urgency of forming a consultative body between the government, political parties and doctors’ groups to resolve the ongoing standoff over medical reforms.

The government and the ruling party earlier proposed the medical community join a consultative body to discuss the medical reform plan that centers on raising the medical school admissions quota to around 2,000 annually for the next five years or so.

During the casual talks, attended by the presidential chief of staff, Chung Jin-suk, Yoon and Han discussed various issues and agreed to collaborate on countering the opposition’s offensive and advancing reform agenda, according to a presidential official with knowledge of the disclosed meeting.

“They shared the consensus that the party and the government should unite to prevent (the opposition’s) violation of constitutional order and work toward the success of the government,” the official said.

The meeting follows the PPP’s victory in two out of the four seats up for grabs in last week’s by-elections, which was seen as a show of public confidence in Han’s leadership, highlighted by his commitment to getting to the bottom of controversies surrounding the first lady.

Yoon’s meeting with Han comes amid a growing sense of a crisis within the ruling party as the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) intensifies its political offensive against Yoon.

With his single five-year term at its midpoint, some DP lawmakers have even raised the possibility of impeaching Yoon over allegations surrounding the first lady.

The first lady has been accused of involvement in a stock manipulation scheme, an illegal receipt of a luxury bag and interference in the PPP’s candidate nominations ahead of the April general elections.

Last week, the prosecution decided not to indict Kim over her alleged involvement in a stock manipulation scheme involving Deutsch Motors Inc. between 2009 and 2012.

The DP strongly protested the decision and introduced a bill calling for a special counsel probe into allegations involving Kim. It marked the third time the party has submitted such a proposal, following two previous attempts that were nullified by Yoon’s vetoes.