Presidential office slams opposition's push to impeach prosecutors, state auditor

Presidential spokesperson Jeong Hye-jeon gives a press briefing at the presidential office in Seoul, Nov. 29. Yonhap

The presidential office blasted the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) on Friday for pushing to impeach three top prosecutors and the chief state auditor over issues related to first lady Kim Keon Hee and the relocation of the presidential office.

The DPK, which holds a majority in parliament, plans to introduce motions next week to impeach three prosecutors, including the chief of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office, for failing to indict the first lady following an investigation into her alleged involvement in a stock manipulation scheme.

Also next week, the DPK plans to introduce an impeachment motion against Board of Audit and Inspection Chair Choe Jae-hae for refusing to comply with a parliamentary request to submit documents related to an audit of the presidential office relocation, which took place in 2022 in line with a campaign pledge of President Yoon Suk Yeol.

"It is unprecedented in our constitutional history and damages the foundation of the constitutional order," presidential spokesperson Jeong Hye-jeon said during a press briefing, referring to the push to impeach Choe.

On impeaching the prosecutors, she said, "It is clearly revenge impeachment to impeach the command of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office just because the results of the investigation were not what the opposition party wanted."

Jeong said impeaching the prosecutors can only be interpreted as an attempt to halt various investigations and trials involving the opposition party.

Among other trials, DPK leader Lee Jae-myung has been charged in five cases, including one in which he has been sentenced to a suspended one-year prison term for making false statements as a candidate during the 2022 presidential campaign. (Yonhap)