[2020 National Audit] Not Lies but 'Yelling' by Chu... Loud Exchanges at the Legislative and Judiciary Committee Audit

Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae appeared at the National Assembly Judiciary Committee's audit of the Ministry of Justice on the 12th, adjusting her glasses with a cautious expression. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] The National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee's audit of the Ministry of Justice is continuing amid loud disputes over the controversy surrounding Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae's son's military 'special leave.' Minister Choo retorted to an opposition lawmaker's remark that "there have been 27 lies" by saying, "I must have scolded him 27 times."

The audit, which began after 10 a.m. on the 12th, saw a power struggle over the request for documents. After nearly 20 minutes of debate over the request for property records of Lee Kang-seop, the head of the Legislation Office, mentioned during the audit on the 7th, the main questioning only started at 11:30 a.m.

The shouting began when opposition lawmakers demanded an apology for Minister Choo's past statement denying that she instructed her aide to extend her son Seo's military leave, saying, "Apologize for the lies." In response, ruling party lawmakers interrupted the related questioning and protested vehemently.

Jeon Ju-hye, a member of the People Power Party, asked Minister Choo, "Do you intend to apologize for giving false testimony during the government audit?" Minister Choo replied, "I did not give false testimony. I did not violate any laws or make any improper requests or instructions." Regarding the prosecution's investigation result that she passed the contact number of the support officer to her aide, she countered, "That message proves that I did not give such instructions."

In particular, Minister Choo strongly refuted Jeon’s remark calling it a 'military absence case,' saying, "It is not a military absence case." Regarding the comment about 'saving Private Seo' with the Ministry of National Defense, she said, "Private Seo was not saved. He completed his military service. There was no need to save him."

As Jeon’s questioning continued and ruling party lawmakers protested, Jang Je-won of the People Power Party requested, "Please maintain order so that the minister and lawmakers can quietly conduct the Q&A," and criticized, "Kim Nam-guk is going too far. Why does he intervene at the end of every sentence and answer for Minister Choo?" Although Chairman Yoon asked Kim Nam-guk to "be quiet," the loud exchanges between Jang and Kim continued.

Kim Nam-guk particularly said, "The opposition only talks about political strife related to Minister Choo, not about people’s livelihoods or other inquiries," and added, "Courtesy means mutual respect, so why don’t you keep it well? Why do you speak informally and insult others, then tell them to be courteous?"

The situation did not improve in the afternoon. Minister Choo raised her voice at People Power Party lawmaker Yoon Han-hong, saying, "If the investigation was wrong, please provide evidence." Lawmaker Yoon also pointed out, "The minister’s lies are all recorded in the National Assembly’s video transcripts. The obedient prosecutors appointed by the minister cannot turn lies into truth," and said, "According to media reports, the number of lies told in the National Assembly is 27."

Minister Choo responded, "I must have scolded him 27 times," and the shouting resumed in the audit hall. Although People Power Party lawmakers requested to make procedural motions, Chairman Yoon Ho-jung refused, saying, "Can we get proper answers if the auditor only shouts?"

Kim Do-eup of the People Power Party raised his voice, saying, "I felt like this was a bulletproof audit for Choo Mi-ae from the morning," and added, "Even when lawmakers call, she does not answer, gives irrelevant answers, and it gets noisy whenever Minister Choo appears. Why can’t the opposition secretaries point out her attitude?"

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