People Power Party Judiciary Committee Member: "Choo's Claim is False... Will Verify Use of Special Activity Funds"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The lawmakers of the People Power Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee stated that the claim by Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae that Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol was using special activity funds (teukhwalbi) like petty cash is false, and they announced that they will verify Minister Choo's use of the special activity funds.

Choi Hyung-doo, the floor spokesperson for the People Power Party, revealed the verification details of his party's judiciary committee members at the National Assembly on the 10th. The judiciary committee members visited the Supreme Prosecutors' Office the previous day to verify the allocation and execution details of the special activity funds by the Ministry of Justice and the prosecution.

Previously, Minister Choo claimed, "Prosecutor General Yoon is using the special activity funds like petty cash. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office did not receive special activity funds. They were used to establish a loyalist system," but according to the judiciary committee's verification, this claim is false.

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office confirmed that from 2018 to October of this year, special activity funds were provided to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office at a nearly consistent rate (a three-year average of 17%) annually.

Spokesperson Choi said, "What now needs to be revealed is how the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's special activity funds sent to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office were used," adding, "Isn't the claim within the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office that 'there are no special activity funds' due to Lee Sung-yoon not properly allocating these funds?"

The use of the Ministry of Justice's special activity funds was also questioned. According to materials confirmed by the judiciary committee, from January to the end of October this year, about 1 billion KRW of special activity funds were allocated to the Ministry of Justice's Prosecution Bureau, which handles personnel and budget matters regardless of investigations. However, special activity funds should only be used for "collecting information requiring confidentiality and investigating criminal cases."

Spokesperson Choi said, "The Ministry of Justice claims that Minister Choo did not use any of the funds, but a thorough verification is necessary regarding where the Prosecution Bureau spent the funds," and added, "Minister Choo's declaration to take the authority to allocate special activity funds from the Supreme Prosecutors' Office at this opportunity is an illegal idea."

Former ministers such as Cho Kuk and Park Sang-ki were found to have used special activity funds. The Ministry of Justice stated, "The Minister of Justice used 243 million KRW of special activity funds from the Ministry of Justice's Prosecution Bureau in 2018 and 335 million KRW in 2019, but Minister Choo did not use any."

Spokesperson Choi said, "Former Ministers Park and Cho are said to have used the Ministry of Justice's Prosecution Bureau's special activity funds through irregular methods," and added, "It seems Minister Choo tried to differentiate herself from former ministers for her own benefit, but the People Power Party will verify whether Minister Choo used the special activity funds."

The judiciary committee plans to examine the special activity funds of the Ministry of Justice's Immigration Office and others at the Legislation and Judiciary Committee's budget review subcommittee meeting on the 11th to confirm Minister Choo's use of the special activity funds. Spokesperson Choi pointed out, "To verify the actual use of Minister Choo's special activity funds, it is necessary to check the allocation and usage details of the Ministry of Justice's special activity funds unrelated to intelligence and investigations," adding, "For example, the Ministry of Justice's Immigration Office has been allocated 60 million KRW of special activity funds as of October this year."

He emphasized, "The Ministry of Justice should explain the exact scale of the special activity funds allocated to the Prosecution Bureau, which handles personnel and budget matters for the prosecution," noting that according to Kim Do-eup, the opposition party's secretary of the judiciary committee, the confirmed special activity funds amount to 759 million KRW, but according to Cho Soo-jin, it is 1.03 billion KRW, and according to Jeon Ju-hye, it is 1.064 billion KRW."

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