Pyongyang is engaged in a widening purge of government and military officials, including those linked to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s uncle Jang Song-thaek who was executed in 2013, Seoul’s spy agency revealed Tuesday.

At the parliamentary audit, the National Intelligence Service revealed that a purge of government officials was underway in North Korea, and that several of Jang’s associates have recently been gunned down in public executions.

Last December, the North Korean ruler executed Jang, his guardian and once-powerful uncle, for allegedly attempting to overthrow his regime.

Jang’s ouster came as a shock as many observers were skeptical about his downfall given the enormous clout he had accumulated in the party, military and government over four decades since the 1970s. 

Jang, the former vice chairman of the National Defense Commission, was the husband of late North Korean ruler Kim Jong-il’s younger sister Kim Kyong-hui. He was regarded as the most influential mentor to the fledgling leader, who was thrust into politics with only a few years of grooming upon his father’s death in December 2011.

Along with the purge of Jang’s associates, public executions have been on the rise, while political prison camps have expanded, the NIS said.

The spy agency also revealed that a number of the North’s communist party officials have been purged for watching South Korean television shows, while around 200 military officers were demoted over their lack of accuracy of artillery.

The NIS also told lawmakers that the North Korea leader received surgery to remove cysts from his ankles, and that there is a possibility that the condition may recur.

Kim had disappeared from the public eye for about 40 days, fueling a range of speculations that the younger North Korean leader had been incapacitated. The rumors, however, were put to rest when he appeared in the North Korean media on Oct. 14.

Meanwhile, at the audit of the presidential secretariat, Chief of Staff Kim Ki-choon rejected rumors surrounding President Park Geun-hye’s actions on the day of the Sewol ferry.

In the wake of the April 16 ferry disaster, Cheong Wa Dae has been accused of failing to coordinate government agencies’ response to the situation. In addition, rumors have circulated about the president’s whereabouts on the day of the accident, giving rise to the so-called “seven-hour gap” controversy.

It has been claimed that the president was otherwise occupied for seven hours after receiving the initial briefing on the accident at about 10 a.m. until she arrived at the central response center around 5 p.m.

The rumors have been covered extensively by the media, and has led to the indictment of a Japanese journalist on charges of spreading false information.

“President Park Geun-hye frequently issued orders and received reports,” Chief of Staff Kim said at the parliamentary House Steering Committee’s audit on the presidential secretariat.

“On the day, the president worked within the grounds (of Cheong Wa Dae) throughout the day, but the exact location cannot be revealed due to security reasons.”

In response to claims that the president was at her residence inside Cheong Wa Dae and that she did not come to work that day, Kim said that the president’s location at any given time can be considered her office and that the president is on duty as long as she is awake.

According to the presidential office, the president was fully engaged in the developments, having issued seven orders in person and over the telephone to concerned officials.

“The president was briefed every 30 minutes, and issued orders more than once an hour. In the end, the ‘suspicious seven hours’ claim is spreading false information with malicious intent,” said Saenuri Party Rep. Kim Jae-won.

The string of personnel management mishaps under the Park Geun-hye administration also came under scrutiny. With a large number of appointments for high-level government positions going awry, speculations have risen that Park’s personnel choices are influenced by unofficial connections to her closest associates.

“Individuals not officially concerned do not influence personnel selection. The public should report if such (groups) exist or if there are individuals who claim (to be connected to the president’s unofficial advisers),” said Chief of Staff Kim.

He apologized, however, for the appointment mishaps, saying that the concerned branch of the presidential secretariat failed to fulfill its roll in vetting nominees.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)