Opposition Party Attacks Ruling Party's Pick for Science Committee Chair, Digging in Heels to the End of Audit
Ruling and Opposition Parties Clash Over Science Committee Chair Choi Min-hee
October 30, 2025 - The National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Communications Committee (STICC) witnessed a sharp confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties surrounding its chairwoman, Choi Min-hee. Lawmakers from the ruling party strongly demanded Choi Min-hee's resignation, continuing the back-and-forth until the final day of the parliamentary audit. The ruling party criticized the STICC as being 'Choi Min-hee's domain,' raising serious concerns about her actions.
The ruling party's demand for Choi Min-hee's resignation stems from three main reasons. Firstly, she held her child's wedding at the National Assembly during the audit period. This has been criticized for disregarding the importance of the parliamentary audit and conflicting with public sentiment. Secondly, she ejected the head of the MBC news division for reporting on matters related to her during the MBC audit. This has been accused of infringing on freedom of the press and undermining the fairness of the audit. Thirdly, they expressed dissatisfaction with the way she conducted the standing committee meetings. The ruling party argues that Choi Min-hee unilaterally conducted meetings and failed to properly consider the opinions of its members. Based on these reasons, the ruling party believes that Choi Min-hee is not qualified to be the chairwoman of the STICC, repeatedly urging her resignation.
Ruling party lawmakers have maintained a firm stance, demanding Choi Min-hee's resignation since the beginning of the audit. They have raised questions about her past statements and actions, creating controversy over her ethics, while also criticizing the unfairness of the audit process, increasing the pressure for her resignation. In particular, the ejection of the MBC news division head escalated into a controversy over media suppression, further fueling the ruling party's offensive. The ruling party has stated that it cannot properly participate in the audit without Choi Min-hee's resignation, even hinting at a possible boycott. This strong stance by the ruling party has caused extreme conflict between the ruling and opposition parties throughout the audit period, significantly disrupting its progress.
In response, Choi Min-hee has directly addressed the ruling party's concerns, refuting them point by point. Choi Min-hee stated that she would 'disclose all relevant data at the end of the audit,' expressing her willingness to actively resolve the suspicions. She also claimed that many of the allegations raised by the ruling party are untrue or exaggerated, and is reportedly considering legal action. Regarding her position, Choi Min-hee made it clear that she would 'not succumb to the ruling party's political attacks and will fulfill her duty as chairwoman of the STICC.' However, Choi Min-hee's strong response has further intensified the ruling party's backlash, escalating the conflict between the ruling and opposition parties.
Meanwhile, Choi Min-hee reportedly omitted the witness oaths, opening remarks, and progress reports from the organizations being audited. The ruling party has criticized this approach as operating the audit in a perfunctory manner. Witness oaths are an important procedure to ensure the credibility of the witness's testimony and prevent perjury, while opening remarks and progress reports are important elements that demonstrate the attitude and responsibility of the organizations being audited towards the audit. Omitting these procedures could be seen as a lack of willingness to properly conduct the audit. The ruling party has stated that it cannot overlook Choi Min-hee's behavior and is strongly demanding improvements to the audit's operating methods.
As such, the National Assembly's STICC is experiencing extreme turmoil due to the fierce conflict between the ruling and opposition parties surrounding Chairwoman Choi Min-hee, continuing until the end of the audit. The ruling party continues to pressure Choi Min-hee's resignation, while Choi Min-hee attempts to confront the situation head-on, further intensifying the conflict between the ruling and opposition parties. This conflict is expected to have a significant impact on the future operations of the STICC, including the adoption of the audit's results report. In particular, if an agreement is not reached between the ruling and opposition parties, the possibility of the audit's results report being rejected cannot be ruled out. Concerns are being raised that the STICC's dysfunctional operation will ultimately undermine the efficiency of the parliamentary audit and lead to public distrust.
In other news, Gyeonggi Province participated in the '15th Trilateral Friendship Exchange Conference' held in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The '15th Trilateral Friendship Exchange Conference' is a cooperative meeting between local governments that has been held biennially since 1996 by Gyeonggi Province, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, and Liaoning Province, China. The next meeting will be held in Liaoning Province, China in 2027.
