Kwon Seongdong on Lee Jaemyung Remand: "Victory for Common Sense... Must Immediately Withdraw Candidacy"

"The Supreme Court's Ruling Is Extremely Reasonable"
"Lee Jaemyung Has Mocked and Manipulated the Law"

Kwon Seongdong, floor leader of the People Power Party, commented on May 1 regarding the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the acquittal and remand the public official election law case of former Democratic Party leader Lee Jaemyung, stating, "This is a victory for common sense and the restoration of the rule of law."

Speaking to reporters in the afternoon immediately after the Supreme Court's ruling on Lee's case, Kwon said, "The second-instance court's (not guilty) verdict, blinded by partisan logic, was an anti-rule of law and anti-constitutional decision that reduced the law to a political tool."

People Power Party floor leader Kwon Seongdong is speaking at an emergency meeting for SK Telecom consumer rights and personal information protection held at the National Assembly on the 1st. Photo by Yonhap News

Kwon emphasized, "The Supreme Court corrected this in a short period of time, and the public has now confirmed that judicial justice is still alive, albeit belatedly," adding, "The second-instance court should be ashamed of itself."

He continued, "Candidate Lee Jaemyung has mocked and manipulated the law all this time," and pointed out, "He has engaged in all sorts of illegal and unlawful acts to delay the trial and secure a favorable verdict for himself."

Kwon further stated, "The Supreme Court's ruling is extremely reasonable and based on fundamental legal principles," and added, "I hope Lee will take responsibility for his repeated violations of the law and immediately withdraw his candidacy."

Kwon also said, "I hope the Seoul High Court will quickly hold the remand trial for Lee and make a clear judgment on his legal risks before the 6·3 presidential election," and added, "(Lee) has shown not a shred of remorse for his wrongdoing. He must be held to heavy legal responsibility with a prison sentence."

He continued, "Since the Supreme Court remanded the case today, the remand trial can be held and a verdict delivered within 20 days," and added, "There is absolutely no reason to elect as president a candidate who has been clearly ruled to have violated the Public Official Election Act, so even mentioning the non-prosecution privilege under Article 84 of the Constitution is wrong in itself."

On this day, the Supreme Court en banc overturned the original verdict that acquitted Lee and sent the case back to the Seoul High Court.

The Supreme Court stated, "The 'golf remarks' and comments related to Baekhyeon-dong constitute the dissemination of false information under Article 250, Paragraph 1 of the Public Official Election Act," and added, "The second-instance ruling was flawed because it misunderstood the legal principles of the Public Official Election Act, which affected the verdict."

Shin Dongwook, chief spokesperson for the People Power Party, said, "We respect the court's extremely reasonable ruling," and strongly urged, "We call on the High Court to realize judicial justice by delivering a swift verdict before the presidential election."

Chief spokesperson Shin also stated, "There will be growing controversy over the morality and qualifications of a candidate who continues the presidential race while carrying various judicial risks, and the debate over Article 84 of the Constitution will be reignited," and emphasized, "As time passes, public consensus will only grow that all of Lee's crimes must be revealed and he must receive due punishment."