By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter
Prosecutors Wednesday cleared the front-running presidential candidate of allegations of financial wrongdoing, but are facing challenges on the credibility of the result.
The prosecution announced it had failed to find evidence that Grand National Party (GNP) candidate Lee Myung-bak was involved in a financial scam perpetrated by his former business partner.
Lee and the party members hailed the announcement as it is expected to help the candidate enjoy a comfortable lead in the race, ahead of the presidential election on Dec. 19.
But opponents immediately argued the investigation was conducted in an unfair manner _ favoring Lee _ saying the lack of evidence was caused by prosecutors neglecting their duty.
The pro-government United New Democratic Party (UNDP) as well as other parties and presidential candidates called for the prosecution to reveal the full scope of their investigation to prove its transparency.
They also plan to push for the establishment of an independent counsel to reexamine the case.
Another suspicion that can damage the credibility of the investigation is that the Korean-American stock manipulator claimed that the prosecution tried to persuade him to cover up for Lee.
The revelation was made through a note, handwritten by Kim and secretly handed over to his mother on Dec. 2 when she met him in jail.
Kim argued that the prosecution was ``scared'' of the leading presidential candidate.
But prosecutors denounced this as nonsense, emphasizing that the investigation was carried out in fair manner given the importance and sensitivity of the case.
Despite this, the prosecution has been criticized for allegedly mishandling confidential information. Although it supposedly took a very careful approach to prevent information leaks, local media reported the high expectation that Lee would be cleared of allegations. This stirred speculation that the prosecution intentionally leaked information to assess public opinion before the result was announced.
``Before the official announcement, the prosecution leaked information that could lead people to believe that Lee was not guilty,'' a spokesman from the UNDP said.