Both candidates from Honam region, former high prosecutors general seen as close Lee allies

President Lee Jae Myung. [Yonhap]
President Lee Jae Myung. [Yonhap]

President Lee Jae Myung is weighing two Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers — Park Gyun-taek and Yang Bu-nam — as his next justice minister, it has been confirmed.

A Cheong Wa Dae official told Yonhap on Sunday that Lee had deliberated at length and was in the final stages of choosing between the two, adding that a decision was expected soon.

A separate Cheong Wa Dae official told The Herald Business that the process was at the stage of conducting background checks on public reputation, and that no specific timeline for a formal nomination announcement could be given.

Given the significant controversy surrounding the previous justice minister selection, the administration appears to be carefully monitoring public sentiment through thorough reputation checks until the very end.

Both Park and Yang are former high prosecutors general from the Honam region and are considered close allies of Lee.

The two were recruited into the Democratic Party when Lee served as party leader, taking on roles including special adviser and chair of the legal affairs committee, and both participated in defending Lee during his legal battles.

Park attended Gwangju Daedong High School and Seoul National University's College of Law, graduated from the 21st class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute, and served as chief prosecutor of the Gwangju High Prosecutors Office.

In 2022, when Lee was party leader, Park served as the party leader's special legal adviser and acted as defense counsel for Lee in the Baekhyeon-dong development, Seongnam FC and inter-Korean remittance cases, attending pretrial detention hearings and warrant review proceedings.

Yang studied at Damyang Technical High School and Chonnam National University's College of Law before rising to chief prosecutor of the Busan High Prosecutors Office.

During his prosecutorial career, Yang handled major cases including the Daegu subway arson, allegations of illegal presidential election funds involving the Grand National Party, and the Kangwon Land hiring irregularities scandal, as well as numerous civil servant corruption cases. He was also mentioned as a candidate for prosecutor general during the Moon Jae-in administration.

With the final shortlist now taking shape, there is growing expectation that the prolonged vacancy at the Justice Ministry could soon be resolved once the president makes his final decision, formally nominates a candidate and the nominee clears a confirmation hearing.

The Justice Ministry has been without a minister for 60 days since Jeong Seong-ho, the current government's inaugural minister, stepped down on Aug. 26, and for 23 days since the launch of the Public Prosecution Service on Oct. 2.


sang@heraldcorp.com