'Pro-Moon' Kim Seong-ju: "The Arrest Motion Should Be Decided as a Party Resolution"

"I have never voted in favor of an arrest warrant until now"

With the vote on the arrest consent bill for Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, just one day away, pro-Moon (친문) Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Sung-joo raised his voice, saying, "The party should decide to reject the arrest consent bill as its official stance."

On the 20th, Kim said on his social media, "I have never voted 'yes' on any arrest consent bill for lawmakers until now."

Kim Sung-joo, Member of the Democratic Party of Korea./Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

He added, "This time, the Democratic Party must reject it. There is no reason to worry about the controversy over a 'bulletproof parliament' because the leader himself declared that if it is not during a parliamentary session, he will confidently undergo a substantive review of the warrant."

Regarding why he has never voted in favor, Kim explained, "Our country's judicial system excessively issues detention orders, and it is not right to conduct trials in detention for politicians who are unlikely to flee or destroy evidence." He continued, "Despite having sufficient investigation time, the prosecution insisted on requesting the warrant after the National Assembly's regular session began, and President Yoon Seok-yeol immediately approved sending the arrest consent bill to the National Assembly as if he had been waiting for it."

Kim claims that the prosecution's request for a detention warrant during the parliamentary session aims to divide the Democratic Party. He said, "The only thing the warrant request during the parliamentary session aims for is the Democratic Party's dilemma." He added, "It is merely a political ploy to split the Democratic Party into those who approve or reject it, causing division to win the next general election."