Statement Document "Strongly Urging Withdrawal of Impeachment Motion"
On the 2nd, the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) issued a statement regarding the report of the impeachment motion against Chairman Choi Jae-won, proposed by the Democratic Party of Korea, to the National Assembly plenary session, calling it "a political impeachment attempt that undermines the foundation of the constitutional order, and deeply regrettable."
In the statement released that afternoon, the BAI strongly urged the National Assembly to withdraw the impeachment motion "to prevent the foundation of our constitutional order from being damaged for political reasons."
It added, "In particular, the audit of Wolseong Unit 1 was requested by the National Assembly in October 2019 through bipartisan agreement during the previous administration, and the audit results were completed and disclosed before Chairman Choi took office in November 2021. We cannot help but ask what responsibility Chairman Choi has in this matter."
Earlier that morning, Choi Dal-young, Secretary General of the BAI, held an emergency briefing at the BAI headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, and earnestly appealed, "We sincerely urge that the impeachment attempt against the head of an independent constitutional institution, the Chairman of the BAI, be stopped immediately."
Secretary General Choi emphasized, "The BAI regards political neutrality and independence as its highest values and has faithfully carried out its duties of checking and monitoring regardless of the government in power. We do not agree with the claim that the BAI violated political neutrality by conducting political audits of the previous administration."
He also refuted allegations related to the inadequate audit of the Presidential Office and residence relocation, which was cited as a major reason for the impeachment push. "We uncovered corruption by a senior official of the Security Office, leading to dismissal and a request for investigation, and the individual is currently detained and indicted," he explained. Regarding the former first-level secretary who was the overall project manager, he stated that responsibility was held equivalent to disciplinary action against a current official.
On the 2nd, Choi Dal-young, Secretary General of the Board of Audit and Inspection, held an emergency briefing at the Board of Audit and Inspection regarding the Democratic Party of Korea's push to impeach Choi Jae-hae, the head of the Board of Audit and Inspection, and read a statement on the impeachment effort. Photo by Heo Young-han
When asked about the response plan if the opposition party proceeds with the impeachment motion as scheduled, Secretary General Choi replied, "I believe the impeachment attempt should be withdrawn immediately today and will be resolved, so I am not considering the situation after the impeachment at this stage."
Earlier, on the 29th of last month, Chairman Choi expressed strong regret over the opposition party's impeachment push, calling it a "political impeachment that undermines the foundation of the constitutional order." On the same day, BAI officials held an emergency countermeasure meeting to share the unfairness of the impeachment push. It was reported that some voices of self-reflection emerged at the meeting, suggesting that the BAI should reflect on itself and improve to avoid unnecessary suspicions.
Regarding this, the BAI stated, "Although the current situation is chaotic regarding what we should do going forward, the intention is to quietly continue the work we are entrusted with," adding, "If we waver, the public will not trust us, so there was an opinion that we must faithfully carry out our duties."
The Democratic Party of Korea plans to vote on the impeachment motion against Chairman Choi at the plenary session on the 4th. Since the impeachment motion requires the approval of the majority of the total members of the National Assembly, it is highly likely to be passed under the leadership of the Democratic Party.
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