Final Day of Government Questioning Foresees Clash Between Ruling and Opposition Parties... Joo Ho-young Says "Ministry of National Defense, Chubangbu Protecting Chu"

Ahn Cheol-soo: "If the Defense Minister is right, it's a Tang Dynasty army"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] On the last day of the National Assembly's government questioning on the 17th, allegations of preferential treatment during the military service of Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae's son are expected to come under scrutiny once again. Amid an inescapable confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties, Minister Choo will attend the government questioning session in the fields of education, society, and culture in the afternoon. Opposition parties such as the People Power Party and the People Party launched attacks against Minister Choo ahead of the questioning, while simultaneously criticizing the Ministry of National Defense for defending her.

Joo Ho-young, floor leader of the People Power Party, said at an emergency committee meeting held at the National Assembly that "Minister Choo should promptly decide her own position instead of coming out again today (for the government questioning) and sticking to excuses. If she does not, I urge President Moon Jae-in to dismiss her." He added, "The Ministry of National Defense, which is supposed to protect the country, has become 'Choo Defense' protecting Minister Choo and 'Seo Defense' protecting Private Seo, thereby damaging the military's credibility." Kim Jong-in, emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, criticized, "Looking at the announcements related to Minister Choo's son, we can see the Ministry of National Defense becoming politicized. It is doubtful whether they can lead the entire military with such an attitude." Lee Jong-bae, policy chief of the People Power Party, said, "The public's patience has reached its limit with the parade of abusive language and lies to save Private Seo, carried out by the government and the ruling party," and added, "Hurting Minister Choo's son is not a legitimate public concern but Minister Choo's distorted maternal instinct."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People Party, said at the supreme council meeting, "Minister Choo is serious, but I think the Minister of National Defense is an even bigger problem. If troop management is carried out as the minister says, can that be called a regular army of a nation or is it a feudal army?" He pointed out, "In protecting just one son of Minister Choo, the military's command system and discipline have been shaken to the core."

Members of the People Power Party belonging to the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee held a press conference the day before, claiming that the military leave, unit logs, interview records, and the number and duration of leave days in the service records related to Minister Choo's son all differ. According to Kim Do-eup, a member of the People Power Party, there were no leave order records for the first and second petition leaves. For the second petition leave, the unit log recorded 9 days from June 15 to 23, while the interview record noted 10 days from the 15th to the 24th. The service records were mixed, showing 10 days from the 15th to the 24th and 11 days from the 15th to the 25th. Personal leave was recorded as 4 days from June 24 to 27 in the leave order, but only 2 days from the 26th in the service records. Additionally, the number and duration of leave days differ across the unit log (24th to 28th), interview records (25th to 28th), and Military Manpower Administration records (24th to 27th).

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