Song Eon-seok, the floor leader of the People Power Party, Kim Do-eup, policy committee chairman, Jeong Hee-yong, secretary-general, and Yoo Sang-beom, deputy floor leader, attend the party's policy coordination meeting at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on the 2nd. Yonhap News. 

As the second round of confirmation hearings for the first cabinet minister nominees of the Lee Jae-myung administration began, the People Power Party launched an all-out offensive to block their appointments.

They appear determined to repeat the precedent set in the first round of hearings, where Professor Lee Jin-sook and lawmaker Kang Seon-woo were withdrawn as candidates for Minister of Education and Minister of Gender Equality and Family, respectively.

The National Assembly will hold confirmation hearings sequentially: for Choi Kyo-jin, nominee for Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, and Lee Eog-won, nominee for Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, on the 2nd; Won Min-kyung, nominee for Minister of Gender Equality and Family, on the 3rd; and Ju Byung-ki, nominee for Chairman of the Fair Trade Commission, on the 5th.

The People Power Party is currently focusing its attack on nominee Choi Kyo-jin.

They are demanding his withdrawal, pointing to allegations of drunk driving, sharing conspiracy theories about the sinking of the Cheonan warship on social media, making "derogatory remarks" towards former President Park Geun-hye, and plagiarism controversies.

Rep. Cho Jung-hoon, the minority whip for the People Power Party on the National Assembly's Education Committee, stated at a party policy coordination meeting held at the National Assembly on this day, "Nominee Choi Kyo-jin, appointed after nominee Lee Jin-sook, is another person who will push education into deeper chaos." He added, "The more we dig, the more horrifying rumors emerge, including derogatory remarks, hypocrisy, dangerous national security views, and plagiarism controversies."

He further claimed, "According to media reports, nominee Choi allegedly slapped a female student he was teaching in the past." He asserted, "Beyond mere controversy, it is clear that he is an appointee who does not meet the basic standards for the head of education."

Rep. Ju Jin-woo wrote on Facebook, "Nominee Choi engaged in drunk driving while in a state of extreme intoxication that threatened others' lives, and he promoted the Queer Festival, which advocates for homosexuality." He pointed out, "This is far more serious than nominee Lee Jin-sook, who was withdrawn."

The People Power Party is also preparing to block the appointment of nominee Lee Eog-won, deeming him unqualified.

Rep. Kang Min-guk, the minority whip on the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, stated at the meeting, "They have selected a nominee fitting for the four-time offender Lee Jae-myung administration." He alleged, "After retiring as Vice Minister of Economy and Finance, nominee Lee worked at eight different places concurrently during his three-year employment restriction period, earning 620 million won."

Rep. Kang asked, "Aren't you ashamed in front of the hard work of young people in their 20s and 30s trying to fill one more line on their resumes?" He added, "We will thoroughly investigate the suspicions and filter out an unqualified Chairman of the Financial Services Commission."

The People Power Party also criticized nominee Ju Byung-ki for alleged habitual speeding in school zones and tax arrears.

The People Power Party's strategy is to highlight the Lee Jae-myung administration's appointment failures during the confirmation hearings and to stir negative public opinion against the government and the ruling party. This appears to be a calculation aimed at boosting the People Power Party's approval ratings and lowering the Lee Jae-myung administration's approval ratings through the confirmation hearings.

Yonhap News