Presidential Office "Regrets Forced Passage of Special Prosecutor Law for Chae Sang-byeong... Will Respond Severely" (Comprehensive)

Jung Jin-seok Chief Secretary Briefing
"Bad Politics Trying to Politicize"

Jung Jin-seok, Chief of Staff to the President, wears a stern expression as he announces the presidential office's position on the 'Chae Sang-byeong Special Prosecutor Act,' which was passed solely by the opposition party in the National Assembly, at the Yongsan Presidential Office building in Seoul on the 2nd.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The Presidential Office stated on the 2nd, "We deeply regret that the Democratic Party of Korea unilaterally pushed through the Special Prosecutor Act for Sergeant Chae Sang-byeong in today's plenary session of the National Assembly, even changing the agenda."

It continued, "Although the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Agency (HCIA) and the police are already conducting a full-scale investigation, the opposition party's unilateral push for a special prosecutor can only be seen as having political motives other than uncovering the truth," indicating a stern response. This effectively foreshadows President Yoon Seok-yeol's exercise of the right to request reconsideration (veto) of the Special Prosecutor Act.

Chief Secretary Jeong Jin-seok said at a briefing at the Yongsan Presidential Office in the afternoon, "The Presidential Office views the Democratic Party's unilateral legislative rampage very seriously," and criticized, "The Democratic Party's forced passage of the Special Prosecutor Act is bad politics that exploit Sergeant Chae's tragic death for political purposes."

In particular, the Presidential Office expressed deep regret that the Democratic Party pushed ahead with legislative rampage before the ink was even dry on the first chapter of cooperation between the ruling and opposition parties, following the summit meeting and the agreed passage of the Itaewon Special Act, at a time when public expectations for bipartisan cooperation are high. This is pointed out as directly opposing the public mandate from the general election for the ruling and opposition parties to join forces and take care of people's livelihoods.

Chief Secretary Jeong said, "It is natural to investigate the cause and process of the accident and punish those responsible," adding, "Since the HCIA and police are currently conducting thorough investigations, it is only natural to wait for the investigation results before introducing a special prosecutor." He explained that this is the purpose of introducing a special prosecutor as stipulated by law.

He added, "As guaranteed by law, the HCIA and police should conduct the initial investigation, and based on the results, procedures such as the introduction of a special prosecutor should be discussed and followed."

He also emphasized, "The HCIA is an organization established by the Democratic Party using even the fast-track procedure. Naturally, it is common sense and the right approach to wait for the investigation results. So far, there have been 13 instances of special prosecutors being introduced, but not a single case has occurred without bipartisan agreement."

Chief Secretary Jeong said, "Given the great concern that the unilaterally passed Special Prosecutor Act today will remain a case that plunges the Republic of Korea into chaos, the Presidential Office will respond sternly in the future."