By Jun Ji-hye
Rep. Choi Kyung-hwan of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) is likely to face arrest by the prosecution after the ongoing provisional session of the National Assembly ends on Dec. 23.
The Assembly said Wednesday that it has decided not to hold a vote on an arrest motion for the four-term lawmaker as the provisional session will end soon. It added that the prosecution will be able to make a decision on its own from Dec. 24.
The decision was made after the meeting between Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun and floor leaders from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), the LKP and the minor opposition People’s Party.
“There will be no vote on the motion at the Assembly,” said DPK lawmaker Park Hong-geun.
On Tuesday, the justice ministry submitted a motion seeking parliamentary consent to arrest Choi, one of the closest aides to ousted President Park Geun-hye, on suspicions that he received 100 million won ($91,570) from the National Intelligence Service’s (NIS) special activities fund in 2014. At the time, he was serving as deputy prime minister and finance minister for the Park government.
The ministry submitted such a motion as Choi, as an incumbent lawmaker, is immune from arrest while the National Assembly is in session unless the parliament passes a motion giving its consent to the move.
By law, the arrest motion should be put to a vote within 72 hours after it is reported to the Assembly meeting. If the vote does not take place, the motion is automatically discarded.
Immunity from arrest is valid only while the Assembly is in session, which means that prosecutors can still push for Choi’s arrest on its own after the session ends.
During its ongoing investigation into the NIS’s bribery allegations, prosecutors have secured the testimony from former NIS director Lee Byung-kee that the agency offered Choi 100 million won.
Lee had already been arrested for allegedly handing over bribes to those working for the presidential office during the Park administration.
During 20 hours of questioning on Dec. 6 and 7, Choi strongly denied the bribery allegation.
The LKP criticized the prosecution’s investigation, calling it the Moon Jae-in government’s political revenge against the former conservative government.
Four-term DPK lawmaker Lee Sang-min shot back, saying even an incumbent lawmaker cannot be an exception in taking responsibility for wrongdoing.
“Everything should be handled in accordance with laws and procedures,” he said during a radio appearance.