Pressure is mounting on President Lee Jae Myung and the ruling bloc as criticism over Lee's most recent Cabinet picks continues despite two nominees stepping aside.
Lee's chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik offered to resign Monday to take responsibility for controversies over the reshuffle.
According to Seong Ghi-hong, senior presidential secretary for public relations and communications, Kang extended his offer to the president on Monday morning, holding himself broadly accountable for the situation.
But Seong referred to the president's repeated remarks at a press conference on Friday that his own shortcomings were the reason the public was critical of state affairs, explaining that Lee told his secretaries at Cheong Wa Dae on Monday that he had yet to decide whether to accept Kang's resignation.
Kang has been serving as Lee's chief of staff since his inauguration in June 2025, having previously been a three-term lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea.
If Lee accepts Kang's resignation, two out of three top presidential aide positions will be left vacant, with Wi Sung-lac, director of national security, being the one remaining.
The other post was previously held by Kim Yong-beom, who was chief secretary for policy at Cheong Wa Dae but stepped down as suspicions grew over his alleged role in South Korea's controversial launch of leveraged exchange-traded funds.
Kang's resignation was the latest development in the ruling bloc's struggle to find a breakthrough in state affairs even after embattled minister nominees Rep. Kim Seung-won of the Democratic Party and Rep. Yong Hye-in of Basic Income Party declared they would no longer seek to take up the positions they were nominated for.
The Democratic Party-controlled Legislation and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly adopted a confirmation report on Kim Seung-won, a two-term lawmaker, despite his alleged involvement in a stock manipulation scheme.
While Lee had not publicly made a decision regarding the nominee, Kim announced Saturday that he would withdraw from the nomination.
Kim's decision came in the wake of local media reports that included allegations of sexual harassment, workplace harassment and manipulation of financial statements of the liberal party's regional subchapter in Gyeonggi Province.
Asked if the petition aimed at disclosing Kim's misdeeds had been submitted to Cheong Wa Dae, chief presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung declined to elaborate, but said the presidential office is an institution that "answers by using its power of nomination" in a radio interview Monday.
Kim followed the in footsteps of Yong, another embattled nominee who announced her decision to decline the nomination for the Gender Equality Minister on Sept. 13.
That leaves just four out of six nominees announced in late August's Cabinet reshuffle remaining.
The main opposition People Power Party has ramped up pressure on the ruling bloc.
Rep. Jeong Jeom-sig, floor leader of the People Power Party, told reporters Monday that Kang had made a "rightful" decision given that he oversees ministerial-level nominations and therefore bears the greatest responsibility for Cheong Wa Dae's failed nominations.
Jeong also said Prime Minister Han Seong-sook cannot avoid responsibility for her role in the nominations.
Rep. Kim Jang-kyom of the People Power Party also blasted the ruling party over allegations that it had attempted to silence a broadcaster concerning the troubled nominee's scandal.
He raised suspicions that TV network KBS, which ran a story about allegations of sexual misconduct by Kim, had received a complaint from Democratic Party lawmaker Rep. Han Jun-ho's office. Given that the lawmaker is a member of the committee of which KBS is subject to parliamentary oversight, the conservative lawmaker claimed that Han's act itself could constitute an undue pressure on the broadcaster.
Conservative independent Rep. Han Dong-hoon on Sunday raised suspicions that the Democratic Party's leadership had ignored petitions by Kim's former secretaries, and therefore Democratic Party Chair Rep. Kim Min-seok, who backed Lee's justice minister nominations, should also be held accountable.
consnow@heraldcorp.com
