Prosecutor Choo Mi-ae Raises Special Activity Fund Issue, Questions "Does Yoon Seok-yeol Have the Qualification to Manage the Nation's Treasury?"

Yeo Kim Seung-won "Yoon Used 14.7 Billion Won in Cash from Special Activity Funds"
People Power Party "False Mudslinging"

Former Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae. [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] On the 8th, former Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae directly targeted Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, who was accused by the ruling party of using 14.7 billion won in cash from special activity funds during his tenure as Prosecutor General, saying, "Is a Prosecutor General who refused to disclose the details qualified to manage the country's treasury?"

Former Minister Choo said this in a post on her Facebook page, stating, "Yoon's side lies every time they open their mouths."

Earlier, on the 7th, Kim Seung-won, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, claimed at the National Assembly Budget and Accounts Special Committee plenary meeting that "there is a calculation that Yoon used 14.7 billion won in cash from special activity funds during his tenure as Prosecutor General."

Kim revealed materials related to Yoon's special activity funds during his tenure as Prosecutor General, which were submitted by the Ministry of Justice, pointing out, "There are no usage details, and no receipts were attached. It was all spent in cash."

In response, the People Power Party denied this as "false negative." The party's campaign headquarters issued a statement saying, "Former Minister Choo once ordered an inspection of special activity funds to undermine and oust Yoon Seok-yeol when he was Prosecutor General, thoroughly investigating and verifying the facts in the National Assembly," adding, "Despite finding no issues, she brought it up again as if it were a new problem."

Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, attended the policy discussion titled "Science and Technology Change the Future of Korea" held at the Korea Science and Technology Center in Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam-gu on the 8th, where he announced his science and technology pledges. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Former Minister Choo called this a "shameless lie," stating, "The issue of prosecutorial special activity funds was first pointed out by the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee in November 2020 regarding opaque execution. At that time, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office also raised concerns about insufficient investigation funds."

She explained, "The special activity funds allocated that year amounted to 9.4 billion won, which were collectively provided to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office through the Ministry of Justice's Prosecutor's Office at the beginning of the year," adding, "Accordingly, the Ministry of Justice, which supervises the Prosecutors' Office budget, instructed the Prosecutor's Office to receive reports on expenditures over 5 million won. Additionally, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Inspection Department was ordered to investigate whether any specific departments or district prosecutors' offices were unreasonably overpaid."

She continued, "Yoon Seok-yeol's Supreme Prosecutors' Office immediately resisted, refusing to cooperate with the investigation or submit supporting documents," emphasizing, "The Prosecutors' Office must keep records of the allocation and expenditure of special activity funds according to the Board of Audit and Inspection's 'Special Activity Fund Accounting Guidelines.' They must comply with audits by the Board of Audit and Inspection as well as internal audits by the Ministry of Justice."

Former Minister Choo added, "It was as if Yoon's Supreme Prosecutors' Office reigned as an extraterritorial sovereign Prosecutor General, completely rejecting all inquiries," and "Despite losing a lawsuit last month demanding disclosure of special activity funds, the Prosecutors' Office refused to disclose and filed an appeal."

Meanwhile, the Prosecutors' Office lost a lawsuit last month filed by Ha Seung-soo, co-representative of the civic group 'Catch the Tax Thieves,' demanding disclosure of special activity funds. However, the Prosecutors' Office appealed the court ruling, arguing that special activity funds are confidential matters and that disclosure could hinder investigative work.

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