Competition Rate for the Corruption Investigation Office Prosecutors '10 to 1'... Half Are Former Prosecutors

[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] About half of the applicants for the high-ranking public officials crime investigation office (Gong-su-cheo) prosecutors, which saw a competition rate of 10 to 1, are former prosecutors, and around 30 women applied. The application deadline for investigators, which closes on the 5th, is expected to see a surge in submissions at the last minute, similar to the prosecutor recruitment, resulting in a high competition rate.

On his way to work that day, Kim Jin-wook, head of Gong-su-cheo, told reporters about the prosecutor applicant recruitment results, "The applications were balanced roughly in proportion to the representation of each professional group in the legal community," he said.

According to the application results that closed the previous day, 40 applicants applied for the four chief prosecutor positions, and 193 applied for the 19 regular prosecutor positions, each recording a competition rate of 10 to 1.

Kim said, "We also thought there were many applicants," adding, "It means there is that much public interest." Regarding the proportion of applicants from the Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyeon), he explained, "It is actually difficult to ascertain because it is not written on the application form."

Applicants for the Gong-su-cheo chief prosecutor position must have held a lawyer's license for more than 12 years, and those for the regular prosecutor position must have held it for more than 7 years. Gong-su-cheo will soon announce the successful candidates of the document screening and conduct interviews at the end of this month. Candidates shortlisted through the interviews will be recommended by the Gong-su-cheo personnel committee and finally appointed by the president.

Meanwhile, regarding the timing of enacting the case and office regulations that specifically stipulate the authority to request case transfers, Kim said, "It should be done within this month," adding, "It will be done before the composition of the investigation office personnel is completed." Also, concerning some civic groups' announcement that they plan to accuse Chief Justice Kim Myung-soo of abuse of authority for rejecting his resignation, he refrained from commenting, saying, "It is a stage where it is difficult to say anything."

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