Anchor: Oceans and Fisheries Minister nominee Park Jun-young resigned over a British porcelain scandal. In a statement on Thursday, Park apologized for his wife’s controversial purchases of thousands of expensive British porcelain products, which he and his wife are accused of bringing to Korea without paying due taxes. 
Kim Bum-soo has the latest on President Moon Jae-in’s cabinet nominees. 
 
Report: Embattled Oceans and Fisheries Minister nominee Park Jun-young has stepped down amid controversy surrounding his wife’s massive purchases of expensive china from Britain.  

The nominee on Thursday announced his resignation in a press release, owning up to his transgressions which directed public criticism against him as well as the presidential office. 

During his confirmation hearing last week, the main opposition accused Park's wife of buying some three-thousand pieces of high-end tea cups and other porcelain products in the U.K., then bringing them in among shipments of their belongings which were not required to clear customs as he was returning to South Korea after serving as a diplomat, thereby allowing her to avoid paying customs duties.

After serving as a minister-counselor at the South Korean Embassy in the U.K., the career-civil servant in 2018 returned home, where his wife opened a cafe and allegedly sold some of her collection. 

Park said he does not intend to burden the president or the oceans ministry any longer, noting that he failed to meet the public's exacting standards for a cabinet minister. 

In the wake of the ruling Democratic Party’s landslide defeat in the April mayoral by-elections, President Moon Jae-in announced a cabinet reshuffle, replacing his prime minister, as well as land, industry, science, oceans and labor ministers. 

Main opposition People Power Party spokesperson Rep. Bae June-young welcomed Park’s resignation, and argued that Moon’s land and science minister nominees are as bad if not worse than Park.

A presidential official said that Park reached his decision after communicating with the top office on the public sentiment. 

With one of the three embattled nominees now stepping down, the official said that the resignation should lead to the prompt appointments of the remaining science and labor minister nominees.
Kim Bum-soo, KBS World Radio News.