Democratic First-Term Lawmaker: "If Acting President Han Does Not Withdraw Constitutional Court Justice Nomination, Impeachment Will Follow"

Calls for the Impeachment of Choi Sangmok and Shim Woojung

First-term lawmakers of the Democratic Party of Korea announced on the 9th that they will push for the impeachment of Acting President and Prime Minister Han Deok-su if he does not withdraw the nominations of Lee Wan-gyu and Ham Sang-hoon as Constitutional Court justice candidates.

Members of 'Deomincho,' a group of first-term lawmakers from the Democratic Party of Korea, are urging Han Duck-soo, Acting President and Prime Minister, to withdraw the nominations of Lee Wan-gyu and Ham Sang-hoon as Constitutional Court justices at the National Assembly Communication Office in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 9th. Photo by Yonhap News

The first-term lawmakers' group 'Deomincho' held a press conference at the National Assembly that afternoon, stating, "Many constitutional scholars, including the Legislative Research Office, have clearly pointed out that Acting President Han's appointment of Constitutional Court justices, which is the president's prerogative, is an overreach of authority."

The first-term lawmakers argued, "With the dismissal of Yoon Seok-yeol, there is no longer a government directly elected by the people," and added, "The role of the Prime Minister acting as 'Acting President' due to the presidential vacancy is not to 'pretend to be the president' or act as a 'proxy for the leader of the rebellion,' but to cooperate in the early resolution of the rebellion and the stabilization of national affairs."

They continued, "Acting President Han is still following the will of the rebel forces rather than the will of the people," and criticized, "The very proof of this is that he committed an overreach by nominating 'presidential prerogative Constitutional Court justices' as if he had received orders from the leader of the rebellion, thereby exacerbating national confusion."

They also emphasized, "Lee Wan-gyu, the head of the Legislative Affairs Office nominated by Acting President Han as a Constitutional Court justice candidate, is a 40-year close friend of the rebel leader Yoon Seok-yeol and is suspected of conspiring to destroy evidence by attending a private gathering shortly after the rebellion incident, making him a suspect in the crime of rebellion," adding, "Appointing such a person as a successor Constitutional Court justice is clearly an act of national disorder aimed at preventing the end of the rebellion."

They also pointed out issues regarding Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok, including his failure to appoint Ma Eun-hyuk as a Constitutional Court justice candidate during his previous tenure as acting president and controversies over U.S. Treasury investments, arguing that "Deputy Prime Minister Choi should also be impeached."

Regarding Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung, they stated, "He voluntarily admitted to being an accomplice to the rebellion by immediately giving up appealing the court's decision to cancel the detention of former President Yoon Seok-yeol, and lost public trust due to his children's employment corruption," concluding that "he must be impeached."