Yoon's Side: "Complete Prosecution Reform to Be Put to National Referendum During Local Elections... Democratic Party Ignores Constitution"

Jang Je-won, Chief of Staff to the President-elect, is answering questions from reporters on the 26th in front of the office of the 20th Presidential Transition Committee in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The office of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol has decided to pursue a national referendum regarding the Democratic Party's push for the 'Complete Removal of Prosecutorial Investigation Rights' legislation, known as 'Geomsu Wanbak.'

Jang Je-won, the chief secretary to the president-elect, told reporters on the 27th in front of the Presidential Transition Committee office in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, "The chief secretary's office plans to report to President-elect Yoon on the proposal to hold a national referendum concerning 'Geomsu Wanbak.'

Jang explained, "The secretary's office decided in a morning executive meeting to propose to the president-elect that we directly ask the people."

He added, "The Democratic Party is trying to pass 'Geomsu Wanbak' in the National Assembly by majority force, disregarding the spirit of the Constitution. This shakes the foundation of South Korea's criminal justice system. I believe this is something that should be discussed with the next government and done with sufficient public consensus."

He continued, "While we need to continue provisional review, from a cost perspective, if it is held together with the local elections on June 1, it could be done without significant expense and directly ask the people," he said.

Jang also stated, "Let's first see the current public opinion. If we ask the people whether members of the National Assembly should be granted the privilege of not being investigated, or whether public officials should be exempt from investigations, I believe our citizens will exercise their veto right," he said.

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