Next Prosecutor General: "Is It Lee Seong-yoon or Not"... Variables Include 'Election Results' and 'Blue House Investigation'

Next Week, Prosecutor General Candidate Recommendation Committee Expected to Narrow Down to 3 Candidates
Lee Seong-yoon, Chief Prosecutor, Reemerges Due to 'Blue House Planned Investigation'... Burdened by Defeat in April 7 By-Elections

From the left, Lee Seong-yoon, head of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office and a candidate for the next Prosecutor General, Cho Nam-gwan, acting Prosecutor General (Deputy Prosecutor General), and Han Dong-soo, head of the Inspection Department of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] “The issue is whether it’s Lee Seong-yoon or not; who becomes the chief is not that important. The prosecution has been completely ridiculed, hasn’t it? Even if someone becomes the Prosecutor General... Right now, they’re not trying to pick someone capable, but rather it’s becoming more politicized and subordinated...”

A former senior prosecutor turned lawyer responded this way when asked about the prospects of who will be appointed as the next Prosecutor General. Since the government and ruling party, focused on weakening the prosecution, are not looking for a suitable leader to properly lead the prosecution organization but rather a “compliant” chief, the main interest lies in whether they will choose Lee Seong-yoon, the most reliable pro-government figure and Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office (58 years old, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 23), or find someone else to replace him. There is a cynical view that whoever becomes the chief will face limitations in their role.

As the appointment process for the next Prosecutor General, which had been delayed until after the election, is expected to accelerate, the prosecution investigation spreading to the Blue House and the opposition party’s landslide victory in the April 7 by-elections have emerged as last-minute variables.

According to the legal community on the 8th, the Ministry of Justice will hold the Prosecutor General Candidate Recommendation Committee (Recommendation Committee) as early as next week to select three or more final candidates to recommend to Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye.

The Ministry of Justice completed the public nomination process for the Prosecutor General on the 22nd of last month and has been screening candidates for review by the Recommendation Committee.

Lee, who hails from Gochang, Jeonbuk, and is a junior alumnus of President Moon Jae-in at Kyung Hee University Law School, has been regarded as the top candidate for Prosecutor General in the current administration.

However, he lost trust within the prosecution due to last year’s investigation into the “Channel A case” and the disciplinary request against former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl. Recently, amid allegations of external pressure in the investigation of Kim Hak-ui’s illegal departure, he was investigated by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) and faced controversy over “imperial escort,” leading to speculation that he has drifted away from the Prosecutor General position.

However, as the prosecution investigation expanded into allegations of a “Blue House planned purge,” with Lee Gwang-cheol, the Blue House Civil Affairs Secretary, also coming under investigation, Lee Seong-yoon has re-emerged as a strong candidate.

Among current and former prosecutors inside and outside the prosecution, the figure expected is Cho Nam-gwan, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office (56 years old, class 24), who is currently acting Prosecutor General.

Born in Namwon, Jeonbuk, Cho, who worked with President Moon at the Blue House during the Roh Moo-hyun administration, was promoted to chief prosecutor during this government and has held key positions such as Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors’ Office and Director of the Prosecutor’s Office at the Ministry of Justice, being classified as pro-government.

However, starting with his request to then Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae to “take a step back” and withdraw disciplinary action against former Prosecutor General Yoon last year, he has continued to act with conviction.

Within the prosecution, he is evaluated as fully qualified in terms of ability and character to be Prosecutor General, but from President Moon’s perspective, he is a card that cannot be fully trusted, which is a concern.

Another candidate to replace the two is Han Dong-soo, Director of the Inspection Department at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office (54 years old, class 24).

Han, appointed just before former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk’s resignation, has consistently sided with former Minister Choo last year and opposed former Prosecutor General Yoon, despite being a senior official at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office. He is a reliably trustworthy card, but due to political bias shown in inspections such as the case involving former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook and his background as a judge with no investigative experience, there are concerns about his ability to command the organization, making his selection less likely.

Outside the prosecution, former Deputy Minister of Justice Lee Geum-ro (55 years old, class 20), former Deputy Minister of Justice Kim Oh-soo (58 years old, class 20) from Honam, and former Chief Prosecutor Yang Bu-nam (60 years old, class 22) are also being discussed as potential candidates.

According to the Prosecutors’ Office Act, when the Recommendation Committee recommends three or more candidates for Prosecutor General, Minister Park recommends one of them to President Moon for appointment. However, in practice, when three candidates are recommended, it is usually already decided who will be appointed.

Ultimately, the key factor is President Moon’s intention. The final candidate is expected to be decided based on whether he chooses a definite “insider” focusing on regime stability or, conscious of the negative public opinion inside and outside the prosecution regarding Lee Seong-yoon, opts for a choice that emphasizes the stability of the prosecution organization.

Considering that investigations burdensome to the regime, such as the “Kim Hak-ui illegal departure” case being investigated by the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office, the “Ulsan mayor election interference” case, and the “false report and leak of Yoon Joong-chun meeting report” case being investigated by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, are ongoing, there is a possibility that Lee Seong-yoon will be appointed as the next Prosecutor General despite potential backlash.

However, the election results from the previous day, where the ruling party lost in all 41 autonomous districts including 25 in Seoul and 16 in Busan, are expected to be a significant burden in pushing forward Lee Seong-yoon’s appointment as Prosecutor General.

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