Yoon Ho-jung orders internal inspection of Lim Eun-jeong over her criticism of Kim Ji-yong ... ruling party calls it “common sense”; opposition calls it an “admission of a failed appointment”

[Financial News] The newly established Serious Crime Investigation Agency was embroiled in controversy over its “first inspection” just nine days after its launch. After Minister of the Interior and Safety Yoon Ho-jung ordered an inspection of Lim Eun-jeong, chief of the Gwangju Regional Serious Crime Investigation Agency, who had publicly criticized Kim Ji-yong, the nominee to become the agency’s first chief, the ruling and opposition parties engaged in a war of words, taking sharply opposing positions.

On the 11th, Yoon wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “Chief Lim seems to mistake the agency for a political body rather than an investigative one,” adding, “I’m concerned that bad practices from the past, such as political interference by prosecutors and collective action, could be carried over.” He continued, “Vetting candidates for agency chief is the responsibility of the president and the National Assembly,” and ordered an inspection of Lim under the law governing the agency. This was the first time the minister of the interior and safety had exercised oversight authority since the agency’s launch.
Earlier, on the 5th, Lim had publicly criticized Kim through Facebook posts and remarks on her way to work, saying, “The first head of the agency will be its No. 1 investigator, and it must not be someone whose example should serve as a cautionary tale.” She said Kim had previously ignored her request for an inspection.


Reactions in the political sphere to the inspection order were sharply divided. The Democratic Party of Korea, through spokesperson Cho Gye-won, defended it, saying, “It makes no sense to argue over a superior’s personnel decision,” and, “A common-sense measure has been taken.”

The People Power Party and the Rebuilding Korea Party, by contrast, strongly opposed the move. Kang Myung-gu, a People Power Party lawmaker on the National Assembly’s Public Administration and Security Committee, criticized it, saying, “Just ten days after her appointment, the minister of the interior and safety ordered an inspection over remarks that were not even a matter of personal misconduct. That amounts to admitting an ‘appointment fiasco.’” He called it “a bad precedent that threatens the agency’s independence and political neutrality.”

Park Byeong-eon, senior spokesperson for the Rebuilding Korea Party, also said the order was “inappropriate, as it could potentially stifle principled criticism of candidate Kim,” and argued that “the controversial pool of candidates should be sorted out quickly so efforts can focus on establishing the separation of investigations and indictments.” Lawmaker Park Eun-jeong of the same party, referring to the 2020 conflict between Choo Mi-ae and Yoon Suk Yeol, sharply criticized the move, saying, “What kind of vetting can there be among the people who were the biggest contributors to making Yoon Suk Yeol president? The Lee Jae-myung administration, too, is just one page that will pass by in a moment.”

Lim, at the center of the controversy, said on social media shortly after news of the inspection order broke, “Even if it is not as disappointing as the fact that a former prosecutor, Kim, is the nominee to become the agency’s first chief, it is sad and disheartening that I have become the agency’s first inspection target.” She added, “Just as I exercised my right to object to improper orders when I worked for the prosecution, I will respond properly with a sense of duty,” making clear she would not back down.
The agency plans to begin a full inspection as soon as it receives Minister Yoon’s formal order, examining whether Lim violated her duty of neutrality as a public official, among other matters. If grounds for disciplinary action are established, a decision will be made through a disciplinary committee under the prime minister. Some have voiced concern that the agency, which launched with woefully inadequate infrastructure and staffing, is already facing an internal disciplinary controversy before its investigations have even got on track.


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