Joo Kwang-deok: "Chu Mi-ae's 'Prosecutor Personnel' Abuse of Authority... If She Has Conscience, She Should Give Up Now"

Joo Kwang-deok, Liberty Korea Party member [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Shinwon Yoon] On the 10th, Joo Gwang-deok, a member of the Liberty Korea Party, claimed that the personnel reshuffle carried out by the Ministry of Justice was "a retaliatory and oppressive personnel move against prosecutors conducting investigations."

On the same day, Joo appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and said, "Dismissing and demoting prosecutors who are investigating corruption and illegal activities of key Blue House officials is an abuse of presidential personnel authority that kills the Republic of Korea's top investigative agency."

Regarding the statement made by Lee Jae-jung of the Democratic Party of Korea on the 9th that it was a "promotion, not a demotion," Joo criticized it as "glib talk," saying, "This personnel move is equivalent to taking away the swords of prosecutors investigating the administration, demoting prosecutors investigating the president and his close aides, and effectively neutralizing and disbanding the investigation teams."

Concerning the Liberty Korea Party's announcement to submit an impeachment motion against Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae, he said, "If charges are proven, impeachment of Minister Choo could lead to impeachment of the president as well," adding, "The essential mission of the prosecution is to investigate crimes regardless of status or rank, but the president is abusing personnel authority to destroy this. If there is any minimum conscience or shame as a political leader of Korea, he should give up now."

He continued, "The essential meaning of Article 34 of the Prosecutors' Office Act, which stipulates the appointment authority for prosecutors, is that the Ministry of Justice drafts personnel plans and effectively consults with the Prosecutor General," adding, "Minister Choo did not give any personnel plan and simply told Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, 'If you have any thoughts on personnel, speak up.' There is no precedent for that."

Regarding Minister Choo's expression on the previous day that "Prosecutor General Yoon disobeyed orders," he said, "It ultimately means 'leave the post,'" and questioned, "Doesn't saying that a public official disobeys the order of the personnel authority imply that he should step down from the position?"

Additionally, Joo said, "When Prosecutor General Yoon said, 'We did what we had to do,' it means that although he was retaliated against with an ungrateful personnel move, he only did what was required by law and principle," and added, "I think it is an expression of his will not to step down."

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