◀ anchor ▶
Hello everyone.
Prosecutor General Oh-su Kim, who said he would block the bill to abolish the prosecution’s direct investigation authority, with the determination of ‘mortal life,’ finally expressed his resignation today.
Although he is responsible for the conflicts and strife surrounding the bill, he made it clear that he wanted the National Assembly to carefully consider it until the end, and he made it clear that he opposes the ‘check-and-run’.
Reporter Lee Jae-wook
◀ Report ▶
Prosecutor General Oh-su Kim resigned this morning, on a holiday, to Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye.
“I am sorry for the conflict and strife over the legislative process of the Inspection and Resilience Act,” he said, expressing his gratitude following ten months of taking office.
It has been six days since I announced that I would not be involved in the meeting, and two days following the bill to abolish the prosecution’s direct investigative powers was introduced.
[김오수 / 검찰총장(지난 11일)]
“I will not be attached to a job. I will not shy away from any responsibility.”
“The criminal system, which has a large impact on the public, should be operated for at least 10 years, and should be corrected through public consensus and agreement between the ruling and opposition parties,” he argued.
He also wrote, “I sincerely hope that the submission of my resignation will serve as an opportunity for lawmakers to consider carefully during the legislative process.”
As if conscious of both the external criticism of the collective reaction and the internal view that the president is also responsible, he added, “I was involved in prosecution reform when I was the Vice Minister of Justice in 2019, but the prosecution is once more pointed out as a target for reform, so I feel responsible.”
It was a planned procedure, but the timing was blitz.
A high-ranking prosecution official said, “I wish I had discussed it with the staff in advance, but I resigned at an unexpected time.”
President Kim requested an opportunity to speak at the Legislative and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly on the Inspection and Overhaul Bill, and was regarding to attend the Judiciary Committee tomorrow.
Until the resignation is accepted, I will go to the Judiciary Committee because I am the president, and since I have already resigned, my attendance will be canceled. Prospects were mixed.
The Democratic Party of Korea pointed out that “it is not a responsible attitude to resign due to political backlash,” and Justice Minister Park Beom-gye only said “it’s complicated.”
On the other hand, the People’s Power and Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon evaluated it as “the loyalty of a public official who is trying to prevent the people from being harmed by the Democratic Party’s legislative runaway.”
This is Lee Jae-wook from MBC News.
Video coverage: Kim Doo-young / Video editing: Yang Hong-seok
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