2026.10.26. The Fair Economy — At the National Assembly's Administration and Security Committee comprehensive audit, the ruling and opposition parties demanded each other's leaders be indicted for perjury over their answers during the parliamentary audit. The ruling Minjoo Party of Korea raised the Hangangbus rebate suspicions, while the opposition People Power Party pointed to the controversy over expensive official vehicles. Kim Ji-yong, chief of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency, said he would look further into the related suspicions but drew a line that abuse of authority regarding the suspension of the investigation request is not subject to the agency's investigation.
At the comprehensive audit on the 26th, Minjoo Party lawmaker Kim Yeong-bae demanded a perjury complaint against Mayor Oh.
Kim Yeong-bae claimed that Mayor Oh had committed perjury multiple times before the Administration and Security Committee and the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee. He said, "A back-channel line called the 'political affairs line,' which is not even on the approval line, obstructed audits and investigation requests," adding, "It's worse than the Choi Sun-sil line." Minjoo lawmaker Lim Ho-seon called Mayor Oh's answer that no Seoul city budget goes into the Hangangbus project perjury and recommended his indictment. Minjoo lawmaker Lee Sang-sik raised the same issue over Mayor Oh's remarks regarding the Seoul Marathon.
People Power Party lawmaker Kang Myeong-gu requested the indictment of Governor Choo at the same session.
Kang Myeong-gu pointed out that Governor Choo explained during the Gyeonggi provincial audit that the official vehicle was replaced because its service life had ended. But it turned out to be a trick replacement by changing the service life, he said, requesting her indictment on suspicion of perjury. He explained that a public vehicle for other purposes whose service life had ended was scrapped, the remaining existing governor's vehicle was sent elsewhere, and a new car was assigned. He also added that the official vehicle used by former Governor Kim Dong-yeon was a 2022 Carnival, but a new car worth nearly 80 million won was assigned.
Kim Yeong-jin, chair of the Committee on Home Affairs and Safety, said audits and complaints related to Governor Choo and Mayor Oh would proceed according to National Assembly Act procedures after consultation between party representatives and committee discussion.
At the same session, there was also a clash over the attendance of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency chief at Cabinet meetings.
People Power Party lawmakers Kwon Yeong-jin and Park Sang-ung criticized that the attendance of the head of an investigative agency at Cabinet meetings could harm political neutrality. Park said that there have been no cases of the prosecution chief attending Cabinet meetings for about 25 years from 2000 to 2025. Minjoo lawmaker Yang Bu-nam countered that under the Government Organization Act, the attendance of the head of an external agency is not against the law and is unrelated to independence. Kim attended the Cabinet meeting right after taking office on the 20th, and President Lee Jae-myeong ordered last December that external agencies also attend Cabinet meetings unless there are special circumstances.
The Serious Crime Investigation Agency was newly established under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety as the prosecution service was abolished with the revision of the Government Organization Act that took effect in October this year. The establishment act, which passed the Administration and Security Committee on March 18, set the investigation targets as six major serious crimes: corruption, economy, drugs, cyber, defense projects, and insurrection and foreign exchange. The interior minister is to direct and supervise only the chief of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency regarding specific cases. At the time, the People Power Party opposed the excessive authority of the interior minister.
0 Comments
No comments yet.