‘Dabbling in national politics’: Choo Mi-ae faces controversy over neglect of provincial duties at first audit

[Financial News] Choo Mi-ae, governor of Gyeonggi Province, faced criticism at her first parliamentary audit since taking office that she was focusing more on national politics than on provincial affairs. Her repeated comments on political issues, including President Lee Jae-myung’s appointments and prosecution reform, came under scrutiny. The opposition attacked her for focusing on national politics while putting provincial affairs on the back burner, and Choo flatly denied the charge, saying, “I have not neglected provincial affairs by a single iota.”
At the National Assembly Public Administration and Security Committee’s audit of Gyeonggi Province on the 13th, People Power Party lawmaker Park Sang-woong took issue with Choo’s frequent social media activity on political matters. Citing eight posts about Kim Ji-yong, a candidate to head the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, and 14 posts on national political issues, including supplementary investigative powers, Park criticized her, saying, “There is public opinion questioning whether she has thrown Gyeonggi’s affairs aside and is dabbling in national politics.”
Choo emphasized that “I have not neglected provincial affairs by a single iota,” adding, “Over the past three months, I have spent most of my time on briefings and meetings about provincial affairs and finding solutions.” She said her social media activity took place on weekends or late at night after work, and maintained that it was separate from her performance of her provincial duties.
Choo’s public opposition to President Lee’s nomination of Kim also became an issue. When Park asked whether she still held her previous position opposing the nomination, Choo avoided a direct answer, saying, “This is a parliamentary audit. I’ll speak about my personal political convictions on another occasion.” Asked whether she believed there were problems with appointments made by the Lee Jae-myung administration, she replied, “No.”
Choo maintained that her remarks on prosecution reform reflected her political convictions. However, she drew a line, saying it was inappropriate to continue debating national political issues at the audit.

[email protected] Kim Kyung-min Reporter