Asked by People Power Party lawmaker Kwon Young-jin at a comprehensive audit by the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee on Oct. 26 whether he would attend the Cabinet meeting scheduled for Oct. 27, Kim said, "I will have to see."
Kim attended a Cabinet meeting presided over by President Lee Jae-myung on Oct. 20, shortly after his appointment. Legal circles and civic groups have since voiced persistent concerns that the agency's political neutrality and independence could be undermined.
When Kwon noted that a People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy commentary and newspaper editorials had argued that routine attendance at Cabinet meetings could damage the political neutrality and fairness of investigations and called for caution, Kim said, "I am well aware that there are public concerns."
Kwon then asked, "Don't you think it looks unfamiliar and inappropriate for you to be taking down the president's instructions?" Kim replied, "I am confident that I would not answer if President Lee Jae-myung asked about a specific case." He took a similar position when asked whether he would refuse to answer if the president inquired about a specific case in a closed-door setting.
Kim also signaled broad agreement with the argument that the allegations of a cover-up in Han's case require investigation. Asked by Rebuilding Korea Party lawmaker Jung Chun-sook whether he agreed that the police and prosecution's alleged quashing of the investigation into Han's case needed to be clarified, Kim answered, "Yes."
At the audit, the lawmaker raised the allegations over falsified credentials by Han's daughter. "Volunteer work that had not even been done yet was listed in the records — isn't that a falsehood?" she said. "Unless (Han's daughter) is artificial intelligence, it makes no common sense that she wrote nine papers spanning law, economics, sociology, international politics and AI engineering in less than a year."
Responding, Kim said, "A complaint has been filed and we are reviewing it," adding, "I will keep it in mind."