Clash over appointments to MCST-affiliated agency heads at parliamentary audit; Choi Hwi-young stresses expertise and performance [2026 Parliamentary Audit]

[Financial News] Opposition lawmakers and Minister Choi Hwi-young clashed at a parliamentary audit over the appropriateness of appointments to heads of agencies affiliated with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. The People Power Party raised concerns about patronage appointments and called for greater transparency in the selection process, while Minister Choi said the appointees were chosen based on expertise and capabilities and asked that the appointments be judged by the agencies’ performance under their leadership.
At a comprehensive audit by the National Assembly’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee on the 23rd, Minister Choi responded to People Power Party lawmaker Kim Seok-gi’s criticism that some appointments to affiliated agency heads were patronage appointments, saying, “I appointed them after carefully assessing their expertise and capabilities.”
The criteria for selecting agency heads and the vetting process also became points of contention. People Power Party lawmaker Jo Eun-hee called for selection criteria and evaluation records to be made mandatory for each agency and for a public vetting system to be established. Minister Choi said, “Appointments are being made in accordance with the law and the articles of association,” stating that the appointments were made under the current system.
In response to criticism that some in the cultural and arts community opposed certain appointments to agency head positions, Minister Choi countered that this was “a claim made by some.”
He said, “I don’t understand why it is a problem that some of the people I appointed after assessing their expertise and capabilities supported President Lee Jae Myung during the presidential election.” Strongly rejecting the characterization of the appointments as patronage, he said, “That is an insult to those people, and also an insult to me.”
Minister Choi said concerns could be raised if the political leanings of the appointees were excessively skewed to one side. However, saying it was difficult to agree with labeling the appointments as patronage based on a few appointees, he urged people to judge by looking at how the agency heads lead their organizations and the results they achieve.

[email protected] Jang In-seo Reporter