PPP Health Committee: "Genencell Must Testify at Audit Over Seungwon Kim Lobbying Allegations"

People Power Party: "Democratic Party Infringing on the Public’s Right to Know by Refusing Witnesses"

Lawmakers from the People Power Party on the Health and Welfare Committee have called for an official from Genencell to be included as a witness in the National Assembly inspection, in connection with allegations that former Minister of Justice nominee Kim Seungwon solicited clinical trial approval for a new drug.

On September 29, People Power Party members Paek Jongmin, Cho Bae-sook, Choi Bo-yoon, Han Jia, and Lee Sohee of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee held a press conference, stating, "The Democratic Party of Korea is refusing to approve witnesses related to the alleged approval of clinical trials for Genencell's COVID-19 treatment," and argued, "This amounts to disregarding the public’s right to know and neglecting people’s livelihoods."

Members of the People Power Party belonging to the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee are holding a press conference demanding the inclusion of a Zhenencell official involved in the petition allegations against former Minister of Justice nominee Kim Seungwon in the National Assembly inspection. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

The People Power Party underscored suspicions that in October 2021, former nominee Kim, at the request of a broker, asked the head of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety at the time to grant clinical trial approval to a specific company. The party explained that this treatment subsequently received approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and a clinical trial involving 93 participants was conducted at three institutions in Korea.

They further stated that, beyond safety concerns at the pre-clinical stage of this compound, suspicions of missing or manipulated data during the clinical approval process and attempts to misappropriate government subsidies have been raised. They also pointed out that minority shareholders suffered losses due to the stock price volatility of Sejong Medical—the former largest shareholder of Genencell—and the delisting proceedings.

The People Power Party stated, "We must confirm in the National Assembly inspection on what grounds the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety approved the clinical trial, whether the safety of the 93 patients was ensured, and who should be held responsible for minority shareholder losses."

The party also criticized the Democratic Party for previously rejecting the People Power Party’s witness requests during the Judiciary Committee’s confirmation hearing, and insisted, "Since the nominee has now withdrawn, there is no longer any reason to protect a particular individual."

They emphasized, "A prosecutorial investigation and a National Assembly inspection are different. The National Assembly inspection is a venue to examine whether the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety’s review process worked properly, and whether there are any flaws in systems protecting the public’s lives and property."

Finally, they added, "If there is nothing to hide, a witness should be summoned. Should the Democratic Party ultimately refuse to allow a witness, the public will interpret this as an admission that there is indeed something to hide."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.