Jo Hae-jin "The Corruption Investigation Office Should Be Abolished... Its Conduct Is Below Standard"

Rep. Jo Hae-jin of the People Power Party (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Boryeong] Rep. Cho Hae-jin of the People Power Party has called for the dismantling of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit (Gong-su-cheo).

On the afternoon of the 13th, during a government questioning session held at the National Assembly, Rep. Cho addressed Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye, saying, "Shouldn't Gong-su-cheo be abolished?"

Rep. Cho criticized, "Gong-su-cheo is a wrongly created organization and a mutant. It is an unconstitutional institution with no basis in the Constitution," adding, "Its behavior so far has been below standard for a state agency. It is a pathetic institution with imperial protocol, case cover-ups, false press releases, and countless other issues."

He continued, "As its status plummeted to the ground, it clumsily tried to restore it by imitating covert investigations in the complaint case, even committing illegal acts. Is there any reason to keep Gong-su-cheo under these circumstances?"

He strongly criticized Gong-su-cheo for registering former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl as a suspect on four charges, including abuse of authority, related to the 'complaint manipulation suspicion.' Rep. Cho said, "Regarding former Prosecutor General Yoon, Gong-su-cheo stated in a briefing, 'We investigated because the media asked us to. Whether he is guilty or not is another matter.' What kind of nonsense is that?"

He raised his voice, saying, "In numerous cases such as the Druking opinion manipulation incident, the Ulsan mayor directive investigation, and the illegal shutdown of the Wolseong nuclear power plant, the media has pointed out that the mastermind is President Moon Jae-in, so why is he not being investigated? Why is Park Ji-won, the National Intelligence Service Director suspected of being behind the complaint case, not being investigated?"

On the same day, former Prosecutor General Yoon's side filed a complaint against Director Park with Gong-su-cheo. Rep. Cho said, "I believe Gong-su-cheo should quickly conduct the investigation and then be dismantled." In response, Minister Park said, "He (Director Park) said it was a misjudgment," but added, "In any case, since a complaint has been filed, I believe the investigation will proceed according to law and principles."

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