HAN’S CONFIRMATION HEARING CANCELLED

[Anchor Lead]

A parliamentary confirmation hearing for prime minister nominee Han Duck-soo has again been adjourned and rescheduled. The DP argued the nominee failed to submit all requested documents, questioning whether he was trying to cover up any allegations. The PPP defended Han demanding the DP make reasonable requests.

[Pkg]

The confirmation hearing for Han Duck-soo did not proceed smoothly for the second day in a row. The session ended in just 30 minutes with no question and answer time or even the nominee taking an oath. The DP and the minor Justice Party continued to take issue with insufficient documents submitted by Han.

[Soundbite] Bae Jin-gyo(Justice Party) : "Are these really insignificant documents? Is it truly an excessive request?"

Han’s hearing preparation team was asked to submit just over 1,000 documents of which around 80% have been presented. But many records related to the nominee’s overseas bank accounts or his real estate affairs, such as mortgages or rental agreements, have not been submitted. Han cited privacy concerns. He received nearly 2 billion won in advising fees from law firm Kim & Chang for over four years but he summarized that job stint in just one and a half-pages.

[Soundbite] Kang Byung-won(Democratic Party) : "You only attended 4 meetings? How can the public be convinced by this explanation?"

Meanwhile, the PPP defended Han noting the sheer amount of requested records. It said many of the requests were simply impossible to deliver, such as a detailed record of his wages spanning 50 years.

[Soundbite] Kim Mi-ae(People Power Party) : "His father died in 1982 and his mother in 1994. It’s inappropriate to ask for property transactions of his parents who passed decades ago."

The PPP said the amount of documents requested from Han is much larger than what was demanded from prime minister nominees of the Moon administration, including Kim Boo-kyum, Chung Sye-kyun and Lee Nak-yon. It noted that Han’s submission rate is not lower than his predecessors by any means. With the hearing making little progress for the second day, parties failed to keep the legal deadline of completing hearing procedures within 20 days after a motion on the appointment was submitted. Lawmakers are set to resume the hearing on May 2 and 3 but the disruption signals so-called "cooperative politics" between rival parties are not off to a good start.