The presidential office has pushed back against claims that the appointment of Lim Kwang-hyun as the new presidential chief of staff was a reward for personal loyalty, saying there is no causal basis for the allegation.
Sung Ki-hong, the presidential office's senior secretary for public communications, made the remarks on the 15th on the CBS radio program "Park Sung-tae's News Show," where he addressed the background to Lim's appointment. Asked about the fact that Lim's wife, Lee Kyung-eun, head of the civic group Human Rights Beyond Borders, was appointed consul general in Houston, Texas, under the Lee Jae-myung administration, Sung said it was factually wrong to suggest she had taken the Houston post on the strength of a Ministry of Health and Welfare career alone.
"The consul general's individual capability and her career itself are quite outstanding," Sung said. He noted that while she spent about a decade as a welfare ministry official, her career began in the office of the secretary for foreign media during the Roh Moo-hyun government, where she handled overseas public relations. He added that she majored in international relations at the Fletcher School at Tufts University, a well-known U.S. graduate school of diplomacy and international affairs, and that after leaving the welfare ministry she served as secretary general of Amnesty International Korea and was active in the international relations field.
On the fact that Lim's brother-in-law, attorney Lee Seung-yeop, has served as defense counsel in cases involving President Lee Jae-myung, Sung drew a line. "It is a fact that the two are brother-in-law and family, but there is no causal basis for linking the brother-in-law's career to the selection of the chief of staff," he said.
Explaining the surprise selection of a sitting National Tax Service commissioner as chief of staff, Sung said Lim is a former career official who proved his performance through ability while serving as tax chief and also has experience as a National Assembly member. "It reflects President Lee's governing intent, which is oriented toward a working presidential office and a working government," he said.
On Lim's political judgment, Sung said that smoothly delivering results as a politically appointed tax commissioner — such as collecting large delinquent tax arrears and recovering taxes that had moved offshore — suggested not only policy capability but also political judgment. "There will be no negligence whatsoever," he said.
Separately, on the parliamentary confirmation hearing held the previous day for Kim Ji-yong, the nominee to head the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, who had faced questions over being seen as a prosecutor close to former President Yoon Suk-yeol, Sung said the nominee had explained himself well enough that it would be hard to point to anything amounting to a flaw or disqualification for serving as the agency's first chief.
Regarding the presidential office's recent formation of a working team to prepare for a round of golf between the South Korean and U.S. presidents, Sung said preparations were under way for that possibility because golf between the two countries' leaders is a very rare occurrence. "Because President Donald Trump has repeatedly said he wants to play golf, we expect there is a high chance it will happen," he added.