Ruling Party Lawmaker Alleges Candidate’s Family Cooperative Gained 878 Million Won in Government Vouchers After Relocation

A social cooperative run by the family of Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won received 878.77 million won in government voucher revenue over four years after moving its office from Yongin to Suwon, according to allegations raised by People Power Party lawmaker Joo Jin-woo.

Joo said at a National Assembly news conference on the 6th that the Korea Child Development Social Cooperative, whose director is Kim’s wife, moved in January 2022 after Kim won a parliamentary seat in the 2020 general election. About two months later, in March, Suwon selected the cooperative as a provider of activity services for people with developmental disabilities. The cooperative’s voucher revenue had been zero in 2021, Joo said, but totaled 878.77 million won over the following four years.

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The cooperative’s voucher revenue was zero in 2021, but after it was designated as a Suwon provider, it increased to a total of 878.77 million won over four years.

Joo said the vouchers were financed entirely by taxpayers, with 70% from the central government, 4.5% from the provincial government and 25.5% from the city. The cooperative was established in September 2019.

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We need to thoroughly determine whether political influence was exercised in the designation process and whether the process of receiving such a large budget allocation was fair.

He also alleged that about 38% of the voucher revenue, or more than 330 million won, went to Kim’s wife and two children as wages. Citing settlement reports, Joo said Kim’s wife received 237.85 million won from 2021 onward, while the eldest son received 85.8 million won and the younger daughter received 7.78 million won after joining the cooperative in 2024. He further alleged that the wife, who served as director, and the eldest son, identified as the personnel manager in a job posting, interviewed and hired the daughter.

Joo called for a thorough investigation into whether political influence was used in Suwon’s designation process and whether the large public payments were made fairly. Kim’s confirmation-preparation team said it was reviewing issues requiring fact-checking and that it could not yet offer an immediate explanation.

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There are points that need to be fact-checked, so we are reviewing them. We do not yet have anything we can explain right now.