Cabinet sets up veto, recommends Assembly reconsider contentious bills

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, center, speaks at a Cabinet meeting at the Central Government Complex in Jongno District, central Seoul, on Monday. [YONHAP] The Cabinet approved a motion on Monday demanding that the National Assembly reconsider three bills recently passed by the liberal Democratic Party (DP) and its allies. Two of the bills call for special counsel probes into various allegations against first lady Kim Keon Hee and the military’s handling of the death of a young Marine corporal, while the other bill promotes the use of localized currency vouchers intended to stimulate regional economies. President Yoon Suk Yeol is expected to approve the motion demanding the legislature reconsider all three bills, effectively wielding his veto power. Similar versions of both special counsel bills have been vetoed before by the president. The latest special counsel bill targeting the first lady not only calls for a probe into Kim’s alleged involvement in a stock price manipulation scheme, but also into her acceptance of a luxury handbag from a Korean American pastor in 2022 and suspicions that she interfered in the conservative People Power Party’s (PPP) candidate nomination process before the April general election. Kim has kept a low public profile since a public scandal broke over a video of her accepting a light blue calfskin Lady Dior pouch worth 3 million won ($2,290) in 2022 was posted by a left-leaning media outlet called Voice of Seoul in November 2023. The video was recorded by Choi Jae-young, a Korean American pastor who claimed he filmed his interaction with the first lady to reveal what he called her “corrupt nature.” Despite a probe conducted by the state prosecution service since May, the first lady is unlikely to face an indictment after a committee of outside legal experts advised against it. The committee told prosecutors that the current anti-graft law does not apply to Kim as it does not address spouses of government officials. Related ArticlePPP storms out of key committee meeting as DP greenlights two special counsel billsPresident Yoon casts 19th veto of term, nixing contentious media bills The other special counsel bill calling for a probe into the Marine corporal’s death is the fourth such bill to have been passed by the DP-led National Assembly. The bill targets allegations that the presidential office and the Defense Ministry interfered in the military’s investigation into the death of Marine Cpl. Chae Su-geun, who drowned during a search and rescue mission amid flooding during heavy rain in July last year. Yoon and the PPP have both opposed the bill, arguing that additional inquests should wait until both the Corruption Investigation Office into High-Ranking Officials and police have concluded their ongoing probes in the case. Unlike the previous three bills, the latest version of the bill gives the chief justice of the Supreme Court the right to nominate candidates to serve as special counsel. The third bill rejected by the Cabinet on Monday orders the central government and regional authorities to fund the creation of currency vouchers to boost their local economies. BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]