Home > Opinion > Editorials

The first lady must apologize first

Published: 09 Sep. 2024, 20:19

An external advisory committee advised the prosecution not to indict first lady Kim Keon Hee, as her suspicious acceptance of a $2,240 Dior handbag from a mysterious pastor doesn’t constitute the crime of bribery and misuse of power. Prosecutor General Lee One-seok ordered a second review by a group of outside experts to ensure fairness of the prosecution’s investigation, given the “gravity” of social attention after the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office concluded not to indict the first lady. The advisory committee is comprised of 15 members who were randomly picked from 300 legal experts.

The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office will soon make a final announcement to clear the first lady of criminal charges following a series of internal and external probes. Despite the removal of the judiciary risk, the issue will likely remain as a locus of concern on the political front.

Korean American pastor Choi Jae-young has been suspected of intentionally approaching the first lady to tape a graft-taking scene. The first lady didn’t offer any favors to the pastor in return. If she had honestly admitted and atoned for her folly when the video was first released, the incident might not have caused such a political rupture. The suspicions built up because the presidential office remained mum and led to the ruling front’s crushing defeat in the April 10 parliamentary elections.

The neglect to public fury is the center of the scandal. Even if the first lady fell prey to a plot, the fact that she casually accepted a luxury bag from a civilian infuriated the public. President Yoon Seok Yeol regretted the “heedless deed” of his wife, but the first lady has never formally apologized for causing such a controversy. She must publicly apologize and ask for forgiveness from the people.

A secretariat managing the first lady to prevent similar mishaps in the future is yet to open. The president last month claimed that his office was preparing to install the office for his wife, but is having trouble finding an adequate space for it. But why does a secretarial office for the first lady require a big space? If the presidential office has the will, space can’t be a problem. Since the president also promised to assign a special inspector to keep watch over the affairs of the presidential family and its associates, the National Assembly must hasten with the procedure.

The opposition Democratic Party (DP) is unwilling to let the affair go so easily. It plans to push ahead with a bill proposing an independent counsel investigation into the affair. If the first lady and the presidential office fail to appease the worsening public sentiment, they will continue to be plagued by the opposition’s offensive.