Police Strongly Oppose "Ranking" Compilation of Prosecutors' Reputation Collection, Citing Factual Errors

"Serial numbers assigned for work convenience turned into rankings
Personnel verification just started...
Rankings were neither made nor can be made"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The police have actively refuted the controversy over allegedly compiling a 'ranking' while collecting so-called 'sepyung' (reputation reports) for prosecutor personnel verification. The police explained that they did not create a ranking but merely assigned 'serial numbers' for work convenience, and that personnel verification by the police is also a routine process.

A National Police Agency official stated on the 3rd, "Although we cannot disclose the exact number of personnel subject to verification, we clearly state that the numbers indicated on the list distributed to local police agencies are simply 'serial numbers' for work convenience and do not represent a ranking of prosecutors." In other words, the numbers assigned to easily identify and organize the personnel verification subjects were mistakenly interpreted as rankings.

Collecting sepyung on personnel subject to verification is a routine task carried out through inter-agency 'administrative support.' The current Administrative Procedures Act stipulates that when independent duty performance is difficult due to lack of personnel or equipment, administrative support can be requested from an agency equipped with such resources. Given the limitations in government agency personnel, this system aims to improve work efficiency by requesting support from equipped agencies.

Accordingly, the police have routinely conducted personnel verification not only for prosecutors but also for political appointees and other personnel appointed or commissioned by the President. This is because the police have intelligence capabilities and relatively more related personnel compared to other agencies. This personnel verification process is conducted with the consent of all subjects. A police official emphasized, "(Collecting sepyung) has been ongoing since previous administrations," and "The personnel verification for prosecutors is conducted at the same level and in the same manner as for other general public officials, and there is absolutely no case of ranking."

In particular, the police expressed their grievance over the current controversy. A National Police Agency official said, "The collection of sepyung for prosecutors is just at the initial stage," and added, "Not only is there no ranking, but logically, ranking would only be possible after sepyung collection is completed, and since sepyung collection has not even started yet, this claim makes no sense."

Given that the police's sepyung collection has been routinely conducted, the fact that only this time it has become an issue has led to interpretations that there might be other motives behind it. Coincidentally, the prosecution and police have recently expressed conflicts several times over 'investigative authority adjustment,' and with the appointment of Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae, attention is focused on future prosecution personnel, which is why such controversy has arisen at this time.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.