National Assembly Hearing Criticized for Lack of Scrutiny

Another hollow hearing for prime minister nominee

The National Assembly's confirmation hearing for Prime Minister nominee Han Seong-sook on Thursday is unlikely to escape criticism for failing to provide meaningful scrutiny. The hearing was intended to assess the qualifications, integrity and policy competence of the nominee for the nation's second-highest office and the official responsible for overseeing the executive branch. A prime minister must also demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of economic, security and foreign policy issues. Instead, the public was left watching another round of partisan political sparring.

The primary responsibility for the hearing's failure lies with the ruling Democratic Party. It opposed all 11 witnesses and the reference witnesses requested by the opposition. The party had similarly blocked all witness testimony during last year's confirmation hearing for Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, and it again denied the public an opportunity for fuller verification. Before the hearing, Han had faced questions over previously owning multiple homes, allegations that suspected violations of the Farmland Act involving land in Yangpyeong had been left unresolved and claims of irregular asset transfers through family gifts. Of the 24 confirmation hearings held for nominees to the first Cabinet of the Lee Jae Myung administration, about 80 percent proceeded without witnesses. The ruling party appeared more focused on defending nominees than examining them. Some lawmakers even argued that many previous public officials had owned multiple homes and few had actually sold them, effectively downplaying the controversy.