[Edaily Reporter Hyera Lee ] On the 21st, the opposition launched a fierce attack on President Lee Jae-myung, arguing that allowing Kim Ji-yong, Commissioner of the Major Crimes Investigation Agency (MCIA), to attend the Cabinet meeting undermined the independence and neutrality of investigative agencies.
Contrary to the long-standing practice of past administrations to exclude heads of investigative agencies from Cabinet meetings, Commissioner Kim’s attendance at the previous day’s session prompted a series of concerns that the newly launched SCIA could become subservient to political power.
Han Dong-hoon, an independent lawmaker, wrote on his social media account that day, “The ‘Lackey Agency’ + ‘Covert Operations Agency.’”
This followed Rep. Han’s criticism the previous day regarding Commissioner Kim’s attendance at the Cabinet meeting, in which he stated, “An investigative agency that takes dictation from the President at every weekly Cabinet meeting is not the Central Investigation Agency, but the ‘Yes-Man Agency.’”
In the post, Rep. Han stated, “Past administrations have maintained the custom of not allowing the Prosecutor General—or even the National Police Agency Commissioner—to attend Cabinet meetings in order to preserve the independence and neutrality of investigative agencies.” Regarding President Lee’s order to Commissioner Kim to “prove his worth,” the lawmaker pointed out, “This amounts to saying, ‘Distinguish clearly between ‘my side’ and ‘your side’ and conduct investigations faithfully according to orders,’” adding, “The future of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency is not as a ‘Serious Crimes Investigation Agency’ but as a ‘Special Crimes Order-Driven Investigation Agency’—or, in short, the ‘Hasu Agency.’”
Park Chung-kwon, chief spokesperson for the People Power Party, also noted in a commentary that morning, “After proclaiming ‘investigations without sacred cows,’ the President summoned the ‘head of investigations’ to a Cabinet meeting before the ink on his appointment letter had even dried,” adding, “The practice of ‘heads of investigative agencies not attending Cabinet meetings,’ upheld by successive administrations, has been broken by a single presidential directive.”
Chief Spokesperson Park emphasized, “The pledge to ‘end the politicization of investigations’ has been reduced to nothing more than a slogan from day one,” adding, “Even if the attendance of investigative agency heads at Cabinet meetings is legally permissible, it is not desirable.”
He urged President Lee to immediately stop summoning the heads of investigative agencies to Cabinet meetings and called on Commissioner Kim to clarify the principle of non-attendance.
He added, “The argument that the Prosecutor General and the Director of the Central Investigation Agency should be excluded from Cabinet meetings is sophistry that directly negates the President’s administrative supervisory authority and the government’s command structure, as stipulated by the Constitution and the Government Organization Act.”
In a subsequent post, he emphasized, “Just as I do not issue specific instructions to ministers regarding permits and licenses, I will not direct the investigation of specific cases, so there is no need to worry.” He also added, “Correcting the misguided perception and practice of giving special treatment to agencies with investigative authority is part of normalizing what is abnormal,” noting that “both the Central Investigation Agency and the Public Prosecution Service are simply agencies headed by commissioners who are under the direction of the President, the Prime Minister, and ministers.”
Comments targeting President Lee’s response—which cited Gemini—immediately poured in.
Lee Jun-seok, a lawmaker from the Reform Party, wrote on his Facebook page that day, “The President has started citing Gemini as the basis for his governance,” and sarcastically remarked, “If the President is going to govern by asking Gemini for advice, why not just replace the President with Gemini?” He continued, “It has no legal risks, no criminal record, doesn’t swear, and has no mortgage—it’s a superior replacement in every way.”
Na Kyung-won, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, also posted a ChatGPT response on Facebook that contradicted President Lee’s Gemini response, sharply criticizing, “The President’s pathetic level is evident in how he receives a biased answer from Gemini based on a biased question and then posts it on X.”
