Jo Hae-jin "Yoon Seok-yeol has endured as much as he could" · Kwon Seong-dong "He will have no choice but to do politics"

Cho "Government completely dismantles prosecution by stripping investigation rights"
Kwon "Presidential candidate has a story, likely to run in the election"

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, who abruptly tendered his resignation, is receiving a bouquet from an employee as he leaves the Supreme Prosecutors' Office building in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 4th. President Moon Jae-in accepted Yoon's resignation about an hour later. 2021.3.4
Photo by ondol@yna.co.kr [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] The People Power Party expressed its position of commending former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol for his achievements so far and stated that it will watch his future moves. It is highly likely that former Prosecutor General Yoon will take a breather for a while and then begin preparations for the presidential election once the by-elections are over.

On the 5th, People Power Party lawmaker Cho Hae-jin appeared on YTN Radio’s Hwang Bo-seon’s Start New Morning and said, "Since the Moon Jae-in administration came into power, democracy, constitutional order, and the rule of law system have all collapsed. To prevent this, as the head of the prosecution organization, which can be called the bastion of law, he has endured as much as he could," adding, "He seems to feel that there is no longer a role he can play within the organization to uphold the rule of law."

Lawmaker Cho pointed out, "The collapse of democracy is not only due to the unilateral dominance of administrative power but also because the National Assembly has become one without an opposition party, and parliamentary democracy is no longer functioning," and added, "The Constitutional Court and judiciary have also completely lost the separation of powers due to personnel appointments based on political alignment." He continued, "Even the prosecution investigating power-related corruption has had its investigative authority completely stripped through the establishment of the National Police Agency (Guksubon), the launch of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (Gongsubo), and, when that was insufficient, the creation of the Serious Crime Investigation Office (Jungsucheong), effectively dismantling the prosecution."

People Power Party lawmaker Kwon Seong-dong said that regardless of the reason for resignation, Yoon will inevitably have to engage in politics going forward. Appearing on CBS Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show, Kwon said, "Despite being persecuted and pressured like this, the president’s approval rating (presidential election support) is still at a certain level," and added, "Considering the path Yoon Seok-yeol has walked so far, it doesn’t seem like he will just stay out of it." He further explained, "Yoon Seok-yeol is a born prosecutor, but it was President Moon Jae-in who introduced him to politics and also the one who put him on the list of presidential candidates. Isn’t this an inevitable matter? Although he did not want it, it seems he has no choice but to go down that path."

However, he said that some time will be given for now and that Yoon himself needs to develop his political skills. Lawmaker Kwon said, "No one can create or nurture a politician who challenges the presidency," but added, "Among the opposition candidates, there will be people who want him to join our party, and there is also a possibility that he will decide to join on his own. I think we need to watch Yoon Seok-yeol’s moves a bit more before making a decision."

When asked if he thinks Yoon will run for president, Kwon expressed confidence that he will. He said, "There is a story that he does not yield to any power, and I think he has a solid basic foundation as a presidential candidate," adding, "He has never shown his political side before, so I think we need to watch a little longer."

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