Park asked to stay out of Constitution rewriting

Park should stay out of talks: Choo

By Yi Whan-woo

Rep. Choo Mi-ae

Leaders of the opposition parties urged President Park Geun-hye, Tuesday, to stay out of any discussions on amending the Constitution and let the National Assembly decide if these talks will be launched.

Regarding Park’s call for a constitutional revision, Monday, the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) Chairwoman Rep. Choo Mi-ae said Park should first give proper explanations about corruption scandals involving her long-time confidant Choi Soon-sil.

Choo questioned whether Park deliberately raised issues over revamping the Constitution to cover up snowballing allegations that Choi secretly influenced the President and her government in a series of irregularities, including suspicious fundraising activities from conglomerates.

“It’s anybody’s guess whether her proposal for the constitutional revision was to cover up the so-called Choi Soon-sil gate,” Choo said during a press conference at the National Assembly. “I ask the President and Cheong Wa Dae to keep away because it’s parliament that should serve as a venue for discussion on constitutional reform.”

In a separate meeting, Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, a 2017 presidential hopeful from the minor opposition People’s Party, demanded the President to “take full responsibility” for the scandals surrounding Choi.

“This can’t happen in a proper country,” said Ahn, also the party’s former co-chairman. “The President’s sincerity concerning the constitutional revision is seriously questioned and Cheong Wa Dae should step aside from any relevant discussions. From now on, the parties should work together to placate public sentiment.”

Meanwhile, Choo pointed out that the President previously opposed the idea of amending the Constitution, claiming that the idea to change the current five-year, single term presidency would swallow up public attention on pending political issues as if it were a “black hole.”

“The President then abruptly referred to her offer as if it were a decision to save the nation, but the people will never buy her offer apparently aimed at avoiding a political crisis and preventing a change in government,” Choo said. “No people in any country would let their leader who is so far from the truth revise the Constitution.”

The DPK chairwoman asked the President to apologize and clear suspicions about the corruption scandal during the rest of her term in office. She also demanded that Choi, who is believed to have fled to Germany to avoid the prosecution’s investigation, be summoned for questioning.

“This is the least the President should do out of respect for the people,” Choo said.

She vowed to form a panel to carry out studies on relevant steps for a constitutional revision in a systematic manner, saying “It should be pursued along with a shift in the current electoral constituency system.”

Choi is suspected of peddling influence in Cheong Wa Dae to forcibly raise funds from conglomerates for the establishment of the K-Sports and Mir foundations. Some political sources speculated that she may have exploited the two organizations to raise money for her own personal benefit.

It is suspected that Choi was also involved in writing presidential speeches although she does not work at Cheong Wa Dae and has no official position.