National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik has urged President Yoon Suk Yeol to actively address the allegations surrounding his wife, First Lady Kim Keon Hee, receiving a luxury handbag, Yonhap News Agency reports.
During a debate hosted by the Korea Broadcasting Journalists Club on Wednesday, Speaker Woo expressed concern over the growing scope and depth of the allegations against the First Lady, stating that the Assembly cannot ignore the issue. He pointed out that past administrations had never refused investigations when allegations involving the president’s family or close aides arose.
“The solution lies in following the direction of public sentiment,” Speaker Woo said, urging President Yoon to give the scandal “serious thought.”
He also criticized the prosecution’s investigation review committee’s decision to recommend indictment against a pastor who gifted the Dior handbag to the First Lady, while earlier recommending no indictment against her. “In the same case, they recommended no charges for the first lady but recommended indictment for another person,” he said.
This inconsistency has further fueled public scrutiny, with many questioning the fairness of the investigation process. The ruling People Power Party has urged the prosecution to make an independent judgment, separate from the panel’s recommendation to indict the pastor.
The Korean American pastor gifted the 3 million won (US$2,248) handbag to the First Lady at her office in 2022, secretly filming the meeting with a hidden camera. This video was later published by an online news media last year, sparking public outrage and prompting the investigation.
The prosecution is now facing the critical decision of whether to indict the First Lady and Choi in connection with the scandal.
