Hong Ik-pyo: "Board of Audit and Inspection has become a political revenge detective agency... Choi Jae-hae and Yoo Byung-ho at the center"

Indiscriminate Retaliation and Political Audits Against Previous Government
Audit Board's Status and Trust Decline
At the Center, a Puppet Audit Board Chairman and a Power's Servant Secretary-General

Hong Ik-pyo, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, fiercely criticized the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) on the 20th, saying it has "degenerated into an intelligence agency for political revenge by the Yoon Seok-yeol administration and a prosecution office in Samcheong-dong."

Hong Ik-pyo, the floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 20th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

At the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly, Floor Leader Hong said, "The BAI, which was the last bastion independent from power to uphold morality in the public service, no longer exists."

He pointed out, "The targeted audit conducted over 10 months to discredit former Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission Chairperson Jeon Hyun-hee ended with a 'no charge' decision, which corresponds to 'no prosecution.' Moreover, indiscriminate retaliatory and political audits against previous government policies, which may be subject to debate but not punishable, continue unabated."

He criticized, "They are committing the mistake of undermining the authority of a constitutional institution by imposing unjust audits and forced accusations on former government officials and public servants regarding nuclear power and renewable energy policies, real estate, and income statistics," adding, "At the center of the decline in the BAI's status and trust are the incompetent BAI Chairman and the unscrupulous Secretary-General."

He then targeted Chairman Choi Jae-ha, calling him "a straw man who cannot control the arbitrary and immoral behavior of his subordinate, the Secretary-General," and criticized Secretary-General Yoo Byung-ho, saying, "He has thrown away his pride and honor as a BAI public official, becoming a servant of power and tarnishing the faces of the majority of diligent audit officials."

Especially regarding Secretary-General Yoo, he said, "His act of selling his soul and handing over the BAI to power will be recorded as the greatest stain in the history of the BAI," and directly stated, "The public knows well that any measures to restore the BAI to its rightful place are useless as long as a person like Yoo Byung-ho remains in the BAI."

He emphasized, "We will thoroughly reveal the truth about the BAI's political audits, retaliatory audits, and targeted audits and report to the public," and "The Democratic Party will use all possible measures and means to hold those responsible for ruining the BAI appropriately accountable."

He also warned the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, saying, "It must apologize for and correct the mistake of trampling on the independence of the BAI and turning it into a tool for political revenge," and "If it continues to intoxicate itself with power and use the BAI merely as a means of political revenge, the BAI will ultimately become the greatest risk for the Yoon Seok-yeol administration."

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