Jowon Chul, Head of Legislation Office, Asserts President Lee's Innocence During Audit
Lee Junseok: "Overstepping and Abuse of Authority... Guilt Virtually Confirmed"
"Citizens Do Not Believe the President Is Innocent"
Cho Wonchul, Minister of the Ministry of Government Legislation and former defense attorney for President Lee Jaemyung, asserted President Lee's innocence on all charges. In response, Lee Junseok, Representative of the Reform New Party, criticized him and called for his immediate resignation. On the 26th, Representative Lee stated, "I hope President Lee will no longer appoint his own 'private attorney' to a public office that is paid with taxpayers' money." The term "private army" refers to the personal military organization of King Taejo Lee Seonggye of the Joseon Dynasty.
Representative Lee emphasized, "The Minister of the Ministry of Government Legislation is merely an institution that provides legal advice on the government's administrative legislation and has no authority to take any action regarding the President's personal criminal charges." He added, "Mentioning President Lee's innocence is overstepping and an abuse of authority." He further stated, "President Lee is already in a situation where guilt has been virtually confirmed. The Supreme Court, which decided on a remand, is very likely to confirm a guilty verdict if the case is returned as guilty in line with the direction they indicated."
Lee Junseok: "The Reason for the President and Democratic Party's Attack on the Chief Justice Is Clear"
He argued, "It is clear why President Lee and the Democratic Party of Korea are attacking and trying to oust Chief Justice Cho Heedae by any means necessary. The only way to prevent President Lee, who already has four 'stars' as a 'record-holding criminal,' from being promoted to a fifth star, the honorary rank of 'marshal,' is to remove the current justices and appoint a large number of new, favorable justices."
He also said, "If such a plan fails, the only alternative for President Lee and the Democratic Party will be to introduce a four-tier court system to delay the process. If they have the capacity to devise such multi-layered defenses against their own criminal charges, they should instead focus on devising multi-layered defenses against North Korean missiles."
He continued, "Our people have never once considered President Lee to be a flawless figure. President Lee does not need to be excessively concerned or obsessed about this point. Morality was never President Lee's strength to begin with."
He concluded, "Now, what the President should aim for is to be remembered as 'a president who faced much moral criticism but devoted himself to the country,' or 'a president who, despite family discord, led national unity.' However, the President's recent actions show the exact opposite: 'A president who claimed to be a victim of political retaliation by President Yoon Sukyeol, yet is doing the same thing,' and 'A president who criticized prosecutor-centered appointments, yet is now placing his own attorneys in key positions.'"
Cho Wonchul: "President Lee's Crimes? I Completely Disagree"…People Power Party Demands Resignation
Cho Wonchul, Minister of the Ministry of Government Legislation, is responding to questions from committee members during the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee's audit of the Ministry of Government Legislation held on the 24th in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News
During the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee's audit on the 24th, Song Seokjun, a member of the People Power Party, asked, "Where in the world is there a president involved in five criminal cases and twelve charges? This is unprecedented even globally." In response, Minister Cho stated, "I completely disagree with the assertion that President Lee committed crimes." He added, "In fact, in the most prominent case, the Daejang-dong case, I was part of the defense team, so I know it well. It is not unprecedented for President Lee, but it is unprecedented for our prosecutors to indict an innocent president by abusing their authority."
In response, the People Power Party issued a statement on the 26th, saying, "Minister Cho, by presuming the President's innocence and criticizing the prosecution's investigation in an official setting, has reduced the Ministry of Government Legislation to a private law office for the President." "Minister Cho must resign immediately," they asserted.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
