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| ▲ Rep. Kim Nam-kuk (R) attends a plenary session at the National Assembly in Seoul on Aug. 24, 2023. (Yonhap) |
ethics committee-cryptocurrency scandal
Ethics subcommittee to decide disciplinary action against lawmaker over cryptocurrency scandal
SEOUL, Aug. 30 (Yonhap) -- The parliamentary ethics subcommittee was set to meet Wednesday to determine what disciplinary measure to take against Rep. Kim Nam-kuk, accused of dubious cryptocurrency dealings.
Eyes are on whether rival party lawmakers on the ethics subcommittee will accept the recommendation from an advisory panel that Kim be expelled from the National Assembly.
The subcommittee had planned to make a decision last Tuesday but postponed the meeting after Kim declared he will not run in next year's general elections, a decision widely seen as aimed at seeking softer measures than expulsion.
The first-term lawmaker came under fire following revelations that he had owned around 800,000 Wemix coins in 2021, worth around 6 billion won (US$4.5 million) at the time. Such a massive amount spurred suspicions about where the money came from and whether he used insider information.
Kim faced further criticism after he was found to have traded crypto coins multiple times while attending standing committee meetings. He left the main opposition DP and became an independent following the revelations.
Currently, the ruling People Power Party and the DP hold an equal number of seats on the ethics committee.
The parliamentary ethics committee runs a four-tier disciplinary system, which ranges from a warning to a maximum expulsion from parliament. Once the measure is decided, more than two-thirds of lawmakers need to vote in favor of approving a disciplinary measure at a parliamentary plenary session.
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