Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-baek [Yonhap]
Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-baek [Yonhap]

The People Power Party on Wednesday called for the resignation of Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-baek, opposing the planned merger of the Army, Navy and Air Force academies.

Floor leader Jeong Jeom-sik said on Facebook that since the Lee Jae Myung government took office, "there have been numerous instances of dismantling national systems in a hasty manner, driven by the preferences of those at the top of the administration without consulting stakeholders or experts," adding that "the rushed merger of the three military academies is another such case."

"Military security, which concerns the lives and safety of the people, must never become a subject of policy experimentation," Jeong said, calling on Ahn to "step down immediately for bringing about this confusion."

The party also pressed its offensive by raising allegations, aired by some quarters, that Ahn had gone absent without leave during his service as a reserve-duty soldier.

Chief spokesperson Park Sung-hoon said in a statement that Ahn had been reported to police over the desertion allegations, and asked, "How can someone who cannot even clearly resolve the allegations surrounding his own military service record speak to soldiers about military discipline and dedication?"

Park added that "if he ultimately fails to offer an explanation the public can accept, he must take moral and political responsibility as defense minister and resign immediately."

Supreme Council member Shin Dong-wook referenced singer Yoo Seung-jun — known in the United States as Steve Seung-jun Yoo — on Facebook, writing that "Yoo Seung-jun obtained American citizenship to avoid military service. That choice was clearly deserving of criticism, and as a consequence he has not been able to set foot on South Korean soil to this day, even after decades."

Shin went on to say that "Ahn Gyu-baek is under suspicion of abandoning his duty to national defense and going AWOL during his reserve-duty service," adding, "And yet he is sitting openly in the position of defense minister, commanding the Republic of Korea Armed Forces. One must ask: which of the two is more contrary to fairness and common sense?"

Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon also weighed in, arguing that "if the defense minister of the Republic of Korea is a former deserter, and if Cheong Wa Dae knew this and appointed him anyway — or overlooked it — that would be, to borrow the special prosecutor's term, a massive abuse of state power," and calling for the release of military service records "to make the matter absolutely clear."

The Defense Ministry responded, saying that "the defense minister completed his service normally, as he stated during his confirmation hearing."

At his confirmation hearing last year, Ahn pushed back against suspicions that he had gone absent without leave or been sent to a military detention facility, after his reserve-duty service period — originally recorded as 14 months — appeared in his military register as 22 months. "There was absolutely nothing of the sort," he said.

According to his military register, he was inducted into the Army as a reserve-duty soldier in November 1983 and was discharged as a private first class in August 1985.

Ahn said at the time that the discrepancy arose because a military agency investigated him in connection with his family providing lunch to active-duty soldiers at his home during his service period. The days he spent under investigation were not counted toward his service, he explained, and he was subsequently notified of additional service to complete after his initial discharge — which he fulfilled — resulting in the entry in his military register.


hss@heraldcorp.com