Position on the Daejang-dong Appeal Withdrawal Controversy
"Presidential Office Unaware of Appeal Withdrawal in Advance"
"No Practical Benefit from Intervening in the Trial"
Amid growing controversy over the prosecution’s decision to drop its appeal in the Daejang-dong private developer case, Woo Sangho, Senior Secretary for Political Affairs to the President, drew a clear line against allegations of involvement by the presidential office, stating, “Why would we politically intervene in a way that would help those people?” In an interview on SBS’s YouTube program “Stove League” on the 11th, Woo said, “Nam Wook, Kim Manbae, and Yoo Donggyu contributed to President Lee Jaemyung’s defeat in the 2022 presidential election,” adding, “We want to see those people completely ruined.”
Woo continued, “Some claim that dropping the appeal in this trial prevented the recovery of 700 billion won in assets from those individuals, but for what reason would we want to protect the assets of Nam Wook, Kim Manbae, and Yoo Donggyu?” When the host asked whether the presidential office was truly unaware of the prosecution’s decision to drop the appeal, he replied, “I asked both the Chief of Staff and the Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs. No one planned this in advance.”
When asked whether this was an attempt to “protect the president,” Woo responded, “The president has already taken office, and all trials related to the president have been suspended, so what more is there to protect?” He added, “There is no practical benefit for the president from intervening in this trial, so why would we get involved and cause trouble?”
Regarding the internal backlash within the prosecution, including from the investigation team, following the decision by the prosecution’s leadership to drop the appeal, Woo said, “Shouldn’t they start by reflecting on themselves?” and added, “I don’t really understand why they are so angry.” He argued, “They already failed in their sentencing requests. For some defendants, the prison terms were longer than what the prosecution requested,” and claimed, “I can’t help but wonder if the lenient sentencing requests were a reward for manipulating statements as instructed by the prosecutors.”
Woo stated, “As Senior Secretary for Political Affairs, I am well aware that the bigger this issue gets, the more it burdens the administration,” adding, “I am simply defending the unfair aspects.” He continued, “We intend to remain calm and refrain from making any special statements or giving anyone an opportunity to find fault with us,” and emphasized, “We must not get caught up in political strife. The fact sheet for the Korea-U.S. tariff negotiations hasn’t even been finalized yet.”
On the same day, Kim Byungwook, Secretary for Political Affairs, also commented in an interview on YTN Radio’s “Kim Junwoo’s News Frontline,” saying, “The recent collective actions by prosecutors amount to insubordination,” and described them as “unprecedented and shocking.” Secretary Kim added, “I hope prosecutors remember that they are also public officials. Public officials are supposed to work for the people, not for their own group.” He further pointed out, “Prosecutors should reflect on whether they are acting in the interest of the public or simply thinking about the prosecution as an organization when making these collective statements.”
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