Oh Se-hoon criticizes Democratic Party push for inquiry into Chief Justice Cho

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon on the 28th voiced opposition to the Democratic Party of Korea's push for a parliamentary inquiry into Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae. Oh described it as political persecution of the head of the judiciary and criticized it as undermining the separation of powers and the rule of law.

At a meeting of its lawmakers the previous day, the Democratic Party decided to pursue a parliamentary inquiry into allegations concerning Chief Justice Cho. The party plans to have the request for an inquiry dealt with at a National Assembly plenary session on the 5th of next month.

In a Facebook post that day, Oh claimed that the Democratic Party was using an appellate acquittal as a pretext for pursuing the inquiry.

Oh argued that it was unfair to hold the chief justice responsible for judgments that individual judicial panels had made on the evidence and the law. He also questioned whether Democratic Party lawmakers had properly read the appellate judgment.

Oh urged the immediate withdrawal of the proposed inquiry into the chief justice, saying elected power did not permit every action. His argument was that winning parliamentary seats did not authorize the unlimited exercise of power.

The People Power Party on the 30th urged an immediate halt to the Democratic Party's proposed parliamentary inquiry into Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae. The party criticized it as political retaliation over a guilty ruling against the president.

Kim Seung-su, the People Power Party's senior deputy floor leader for parliamentary operations, told a parliamentary audit strategy meeting at the National Assembly that the Democratic Party had listed the decision to reverse and remand the president's Public Official Election Act case among the allegations to be investigated. He argued that this showed the inquiry's purpose was political retaliation.

Kim said Article 8 of the Act on the Inspection and Investigation of State Administration prohibits the exercise of parliamentary investigative powers for the purpose of interfering in an ongoing trial. Citing that provision, he argued that the allegation could not legally be subject to a parliamentary inquiry.

He said the Supreme Court's response during emergency martial law, controversy over the renomination of Supreme Court justices and allegations about official expense spending had already been addressed in a parliamentary audit. He criticized another inquiry into the same matters as a waste of taxpayers' money.

People Power Party urges halt to proposed parliamentary inquiry into Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae

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