Jeong Seong-ho, the Minister candidate for the Ministry of Justice, said at a National Assembly confirmation hearing on the 16th regarding the possibility of a special pardon for former Rebuilding Korea Party leader Cho Kuk, "It will be up to President Lee Jae-myung to decide," adding, "I think the sentence is excessive compared to the judgement."
During the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing held that day in the National Assembly main building in Yeouido, Jeong responded to a question from Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Park Ji-won, asking if he had any plans to recommend a pardon for the former leader, saying, "I can only provide a principled response."
Jeong stated, "I have made various comments to the media in the past regarding the pardon of the former leader," adding, "I have mentioned that there is no proportionality or balance between the crimes and the punishment related to the former leader's case."
He continued, "Considering all these points, I believe President Lee Jae-myung will make the decision," and noted, "Since the Cho family has received a final ruling, I think the sentence is excessive compared to the judgement, and such points should be fully considered."
In response, People Power Party lawmaker Jang Dong-hyuk asked, "Are you going to find everyone who thinks there is no balance between the crime and the sentence to grant pardons?" To this, Jeong replied, "Rather than that intention, I believe there are aspects to consider comprehensively regarding the entire Cho family, including the spouse and children, in light of the punishments they received and other related cases."
Meanwhile, former leader Cho Kuk is serving a two-year prison sentence after being convicted in a case related to allegations of entrance exam corruption for his children on Dec. 12 last year. His wife, Jeong Kyung-shim, a former professor at Tongyang University, also received a one-year prison sentence with a two-year probation for her involvement in the entrance exam corruption.
Additionally, Cho Kuk's daughter, Jo Min, was fined 10 million won in May by the second trial for entrance exam corruption, which was finalized. His son, Jo Won, was accused of submitting false documents during the entrance process for Yonsei University Graduate School, but received a deferred prosecution in May.