Statement on the Passage of the Impeachment Motion in the National Assembly Plenary Session
Choi Jae-hae, Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection, is leaving the Board of Audit and Inspection in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 5th. On the same day, the National Assembly plenary session passed the impeachment motions against Chairman Choi Jae-hae, proposed by the Democratic Party of Korea, and against Lee Chang-soo, Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, along with two others. Photo by Yonhap News
On the 5th, Choi Jae-hae, the Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection, stated, "The National Assembly has passed an impeachment motion against me," and expressed "deep regret that the political push for impeachment has caused serious harm to the independence of the Board of Audit and Inspection, the nation's highest audit institution."
The impeachment motion against Chairman Choi, proposed by the Democratic Party of Korea, along with impeachment motions against Lee Chang-soo, Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and two others, passed the plenary session of the National Assembly on the same day.
In a statement released that day, Chairman Choi emphasized, "Even if the duties of the Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection are temporarily suspended, there should be no disruption in carrying out the Board's constitutional duties."
He added, "I hope that the wisdom of the audit commissioners and the passion of the staff will create collective intelligence to ensure that there is no gap in fulfilling the Board's constitutional mission," and stated, "I will sincerely participate in the Constitutional Court's impeachment trial and do my best to ensure the Board of Audit and Inspection can return to normal as soon as possible."
This is the first time that the Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection has been suspended from duty following the passage of an impeachment motion in the National Assembly. According to the Board of Audit and Inspection Act, Cho Eun-seok, the audit commissioner with the longest tenure, will serve as the acting chairman.
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