By Do Je-hae
Cheong Wa Dae criticized an opposition lawmaker for making "groundless allegations" of voting fraud in the 2012 presidential election, Thursday, saying he insulted the democratic process and the people who chose Park Geun-hye as President.
The reaction came after New Politics Alliance Democracy (NPAD) lawmaker Kang Dong-won alleged during an interpellation session the previous day that voting results were rigged.
Kang exchanged barbs with Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn after raising the allegations.
The presidential office said Kang defamed the President, while demanding an apology and that the NPAD enforce punitive measures.
"An opposition lawmaker's remarks have suggested that the last presidential election was a fraud. We see this as a grave situation," chief presidential press secretary Kim Sung-woo told reporters at a Washington press conference. "The allegation is insulting to the people who chose President Park. We question his qualificationds as a lawmaker."
The ruling party vowed to push for Kang's apology and resignation. The Saenuri Party said it will submit Kang's case to the National Assembly Ethics Committee and urged the NPAD to cancel his party membership.
Cheong Wa Dae's reaction came just three hours after President Park's arrival in Washington D.C. for a summit with President Barack Obama. It was rare for Cheong Wa Dae to react so swiftly to a political issue when the President is out of the country.
"Kang's remarks are absurd," Saenuri Party floor leader Rep. Won Yoo-chul said during a party meeting Wednesday. "We ask the NPAD to issue a clear position on Kang's remarks."
The NPAD said that Kang's remarks were his personal opinion.
During an Assembly session Tuesday, Kang questioned the Park government's legitimacy, claiming that intervention by the National Election Commission (NEC) in vote counting had contributed to her victory. Park took 51.6 percent of the vote, while Moon Jae-in, the current main opposition leader, trailed with 48 percent.
To support his election fraud allegation, Kang referred to a KBS report that forecast Park's win only two hours after vote counting had begun. "At the time of the report, only 24.4 percent of vote had been counted nationwide and only 6.4 percent in Seoul. How is such a report possible? There are suspicions that the NEC was involved in vote rigging," Kang said.
The NEC released a statement refuting the lawmaker's allegations and underlined the accuracy and transparency of the 2012 Presidential ballot count. KBS said that the report was based on their own system and that it had nothing to do with rigging.
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| Rep. Kang Dong-won |
The reaction came after New Politics Alliance Democracy (NPAD) lawmaker Kang Dong-won alleged during an interpellation session the previous day that voting results were rigged.
Kang exchanged barbs with Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn after raising the allegations.
The presidential office said Kang defamed the President, while demanding an apology and that the NPAD enforce punitive measures.
"An opposition lawmaker's remarks have suggested that the last presidential election was a fraud. We see this as a grave situation," chief presidential press secretary Kim Sung-woo told reporters at a Washington press conference. "The allegation is insulting to the people who chose President Park. We question his qualificationds as a lawmaker."
The ruling party vowed to push for Kang's apology and resignation. The Saenuri Party said it will submit Kang's case to the National Assembly Ethics Committee and urged the NPAD to cancel his party membership.
Cheong Wa Dae's reaction came just three hours after President Park's arrival in Washington D.C. for a summit with President Barack Obama. It was rare for Cheong Wa Dae to react so swiftly to a political issue when the President is out of the country.
"Kang's remarks are absurd," Saenuri Party floor leader Rep. Won Yoo-chul said during a party meeting Wednesday. "We ask the NPAD to issue a clear position on Kang's remarks."
The NPAD said that Kang's remarks were his personal opinion.
During an Assembly session Tuesday, Kang questioned the Park government's legitimacy, claiming that intervention by the National Election Commission (NEC) in vote counting had contributed to her victory. Park took 51.6 percent of the vote, while Moon Jae-in, the current main opposition leader, trailed with 48 percent.
To support his election fraud allegation, Kang referred to a KBS report that forecast Park's win only two hours after vote counting had begun. "At the time of the report, only 24.4 percent of vote had been counted nationwide and only 6.4 percent in Seoul. How is such a report possible? There are suspicions that the NEC was involved in vote rigging," Kang said.
The NEC released a statement refuting the lawmaker's allegations and underlined the accuracy and transparency of the 2012 Presidential ballot count. KBS said that the report was based on their own system and that it had nothing to do with rigging.
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