Search Results for: blue house corruption

It is amazing the amount of corruption the ruling party is involved in and they are now demanding the prosecutor general that President Moon appointed last year resign because he has the nerve to investigate the corruption:

Other members of the DP and its ally also attacked the prosecutor general. Kim Yong-min, a lawmaker-elect of the DP, said in a radio interview on Friday that Yoon was abusing his power to stop an investigation into an allegation that a reporter and a senior prosecutor had formed an inappropriate relationship. 

Other liberal politicians elected Wednesday such as Kim Nam-kook have also demanded Yoon’s resignation. Choe Kang-wook, former Blue House secretary indicted for having allegedly provided a fake internship certificate to Cho’s son to help his law school applications, was elected as a proportional representative for the Open Minjoo Party on Wednesday. During the campaign period, Choe has argued that Yoon must be the first suspect to be probed by the new investigation agency for senior public servants. 

The DP leadership refrained from making a direct attack on the chief prosecutor. DP Chairman Lee Hae-chan urged the CP to take into account the position of the DP and its lawmakers-elect because the two parties are a coalition. 

The attacks on the top prosecutor were made as the prosecution started investigations into election law violation cases involving both ruling and opposition politicians. On Thursday, the prosecution raided the campaign office of Lee Sang-jik, the DP’s lawmaker-elect for Jeonju B District, on charges of election law violations.

The prosecution also resumed investigations into politically-sensitive cases which key members of the Moon administration are suspected to be involved in. The prosecutors are investigating illegal stock trading of biotechnology firm SillaJen and an accusation that Lime Asset Management, the country’s biggest hedge fund, covered up losses. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but the prosecution is also investigating the rigging of the Ulsan mayoral race as well.

I guess to President Moon reform means that prosecutors should not look into corrupt activities surrounding the Blue House:

President Moon Jae-in pressed Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl to take more control of reform Tuesday, issuing a public warning that the right to appoint prosecutors belongs to the president and minister of justice. 

“Prosecution reform is only possible when the prosecutors themselves act as main agents,” Moon said in a New Year’s press conference. “And the prosecutor general must spearhead the reform in order to bring about changes in not only the customary way of conducting investigations, but also the organizational culture.” 

Moon’s remarks followed a series of unprecedented measures taken by the Blue House, Ministry of Justice and the ruling party on the previous day to chip away at the power of state prosecutors.

On Monday, the Blue House asked the National Human Rights Commission of Korea to consider a petition that the prosecution should be investigated for alleged rights abuses when it probed corruption allegations surrounding former Justice Minister Cho Kuk and his family. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but it is amazing how no one in the media is challenging Moon on suppressing investigations into corruption inside his administration.

If anyone is wondering why President Moon is going after Korea’s prosecutorial system here is the supposed reason:

Moon, who once worked as a lawyer, saw the need for an institutional framework to end what he saw as a vicious cycle: The prosecution was used as a tool for “political retaliation” every time a government changed. 

Roh died by suicide in 2009, the year after he completed his term, after prosecutors under conservative President Lee Myung-bak questioned him over bribery allegations. 

“The conflict between the participatory (Roh Moo-hyun) government and the prosecution over the reform resulted in Roh’s tragic death,” Moon wrote in the book. 

Korea Herald

In reality the prosecutors were not responsible for Roh’s death, the corruption surrounding Roh was responsible for his death. Long time ROK Heads may remember that Roh used to go around claiming he was the “cleanest” ROK president ever; essentially attacking past Korean conservative Presidents as being corrupt. When President Lee Myung-bak took over after Roh Presidency ended, he had prosecutors look into Roh’s finances and found corruption involving family members and former aides. Roh had to eventually admit to his part in the corruption:

“I want to make public something in advance,” Roh wrote. “Right now, Chung Sang-moon, former Blue House secretary, is being questioned on charges of receiving money from Park. I am concerned that Chung might have testified that he had actually done so. The accusation should be directed toward us, not Chung.

“My home made the request, received money and used it,” the former president confessed. “We have done so because we still had outstanding debts.” 

Roh wrote that he will cooperate with the prosecution’s investigation and testify concerning details. “I will face legal action in accordance with the case. I apologize again,” he wrote. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

Instead of facing an embarrassing trial for the multiple corruption cases that surrounded him and his family he decided to commit suicide. His suicide effectively made him a martyr to the Korean left and protected his kids from being charged by the prosecutors.

So when President Moon Jae-in took over as President he immediately went after former President Lee for corruption and had him thrown in jail. So it is pretty ironic that Moon claims in his book that the prosecution system needs to be reformed because it gets used for political retaliation when he in fact did the same thing once in power.

Then last week he executed his “Wednesday Night Massacre” to stifle corruption investigations into his administration by Korean prosecutors. His administration also implemented so called “reforms” that will ensure that the current government can continue to cover up internal corruption.

The Korean left now has a new agency to protect their allies from Korean prosecutors and to go after their political enemies with:

The National Assembly passed a bill Monday to create a new agency to investigate senior officials, a top item on President Moon Jae-in’s criminal justice reform agenda. 

The bill, drafted by a Democratic Party (DP) lawmaker and revised by a Justice Party lawmaker, was passed by 159 votes. Of the 176 lawmakers who participated in the vote, 14 opposed it and three abstained.  (…….)

The new agency is the first organization allowed to take over some of the prosecution’s indictment powers. It will investigate crimes allegedly committed by top officials in the administration and judiciary ranging from the president to judges and prosecutors. Lawmakers were excluded from its scope. 

Creating a new investigation agency for senior officials was the top legislative priority for Moon. Ever since taking office in May 2017, Moon, his aides and the DP have tirelessly pushed the initiative – along with other attempts to weaken the prosecution’s powers.  

The idea of a new agency investigating senior officials was first introduced in 2002 during the administration of former President Roh Moo-hyun, Moon’s ideological and political mentor.

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but if this new agency was in operation when the Cho Kuk scandal hit does anyone think this Blue House appointed agency would have done much to investigate and indict him and his family for corruption?

Also notice the timing of the passing of this bill, they passed it during the New Year’s Eve holiday period when they knew few Koreans would be paying attention. Additionally remember that Korea is a rule by law country, not a rule of law country.

President Moon has to get someone appointed as the Justice Minister to slow down all the corruption investigations into the Blue House:

Choo Mi-ae, a five-term ruling party lawmaker, has been nominated for the position of justice minister, Cheong Wa Dae announced Thursday amid keen attention to her role in the South Korean government’s push for prosecution reform.

President Moon Jae-in picked Choo to fill the post that has been vacant for several weeks since Cho Kuk stepped down in the face of state prosecutors’ probe into alleged irregularities involving his family. (……..)

For Moon, the choice of Choo is viewed as a card to counter the prosecution’s thinly veiled pressure on Cheong Wa Dae with intensive probes into high-profile corruption suspicions, involving longtime confidants to the president, under the leadership of Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but this is what the Joong Ang Ilbo is speculating she will do once in charge of the Justice Ministry:

Speculation is running high that Choo will shake up the prosecution as soon as she becomes minister. As of now, the prosecution is carrying out at least three investigations that involve allies of President Moon. Probes are ongoing into an allegation that the Moon Blue House carried out a political operation to influence the 2018 local election; the suspicious suspension of a Blue House probe into Moon’s associate Yoo Jae-soo; and the continuing investigation of corruption allegations involving Cho Kuk and his family. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but she is essentially expected to help cover up the corruption allegations surrounding the Blue House.

This is very interesting because the current Prosecutor General was appointed by the Moon administration just this past July:

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl denied a media report linking him to an infamous sex party hosted by construction contractor Yun Jung-cheon, senior prosecution officials told the JoongAng Ilbo on Friday. 

The Hankyoreh newspaper on Thursday published a report saying the prosecution, during its reinvestigation of a sex scandal involving former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-eui, obtained testimony from Yun that Yoon also received sexual favors at his private villa in Gangwon, but did not look into it. 

Yoon’s name appeared in the records of the initial investigation into the sex scandal in 2013, but prosecutors reinvestigating the case this year did nothing about it, according to the report by a journalist from the newspaper’s affiliated weekly magazine Hankyoreh 21. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but for those that don’t know, the Hankyoreh is a left wing publication which means the report on Yoon was an intentional attack from the left on someone the Blue House appointed.

This could mean that the Blue House is using the Hankyoreh report to try and pressure the Prosecutor General to squash the investigation into the ROK Justice Minister, Cho Kuk for corruption.

The ROK prosecutors tried to put some heat on Cho Kuk by indicting his wife for fraud:

The wife of justice minister nominee Cho Kuk was indicted on Friday over allegations that she fabricated a school certificate for her daughter.

The prosecution filed a formal charge against Cho’s wife, a professor surnamed Chung, without summoning her for its probe into a series of corruption allegations involving Cho’s family.

Chung, 57, a Dongyang University professor, was accused of forging a school president’s award certificate in 2012 to help her daughter enter a medical school in 2014.

The move is expected to deal a blow to Cho, who attended a parliamentary confirmation hearing Friday, nearly one month after he was nominated to lead the justice ministry.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but he had already thrown his wife under the bus before to advance his nomination.

It apparently worked because President Moon went ahead and appointed him to ROK Justice Minister as expected:

President Moon Jae-in appointed Cho Kuk as justice minister Monday, emphasizing the need to continue the government’s reform drive.

He appealed for “public understanding and support” for his decision to appoint Cho despite controversies over alleged ethical lapses and wrongdoing by his family. Cho’s wife has even been indicted on charges of forging a university president’s citation for her daughter.

Moon said he’s aware of the fierce debate over whether Cho is suitable for the post.

“But I thought what’s more important is to maintain the principle and consistency,” Moon said in a televised statement issued after giving Cho a letter of appointment at Cheong Wa Dae.

It would be a “bad precedent” to not appoint Cho solely on the basis of suspicions of illicit acts that have not been confirmed, Moon said.

Yonhap

Over the coming weeks expect to hear the term “reform” quite a bit because President Moon wanted Cho Kuk as the Justice Minister to take power away from prosecutors for corruption investigations. President Moon wants to move indictment powers from prosecutors to a special unit. If this special unit is staffed with political allies like Cho, this would allow the Blue House to control who gets indicted.

I hope no one is surprised that the Blue House is interfering in the investigation of Justice Minister nominee, Cho Kuk. Really the investigation is pointless because he is going to be confirmed before investigation is completed and then as Justice Minister can shutdown the investigation. All this is right now is the Blue House trying to minimize the public relations blow before he is confirmed:

South Korea’s presidential office and prosecution clashed Thursday over an investigation into the family of justice minister nominee Cho Kuk over a series of allegations of misdeeds.

The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office made a rare public protest calling on presidential officials to stop intervening in its investigation into Cho’s wife over suspicions that she may have fabricated a school award for her daughter.

The presidential office of Cheong Wa Dae immediately denied the claim, saying that it has never interfered with the probe and that it will closely watch Cho’s confirmation hearing slated for Friday.

Cho has faced a string of corruption allegations involving his family, including that his daughter received preferential treatment in entering elite colleges and that his family made a dubious investment in a private equity fund.

Ahead of his confirmation hearing, fresh suspicion has been arising that his wife may have fabricated a certificate to prove her daughter had done voluntary work at an English education center of a university. She became the chief of the center after its issuance.

In an interview on Thursday, an anonymous Cheong Wa Dae official said that a professor who recommended the certificate has been found and that relevant allegations will be clarified in the upcoming hearing.

“Today, a high-ranking official of Cheong Wa Dae suggested in a media interview that it is not a fabrication with regard to the certificate forgery allegation involving the minister nominee’s wife. This can be seen as intervention in the investigation, and it is very inappropriate,” the prosecution said in a text message to reporters, citing one of its own officials.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but I guess Cho Kuk represents the type of fair and just society that President Moon has been talking about.

It looks like the Moon administration is a step closer to further consolidating control of the government and getting additional powers to go after their political enemies. In a rare statement, South Korea’s Prosecutor General came out against the bill:

Highly contentious bills on electoral reform and the establishment of an independent investigation agency were fast-tracked at the National Assembly late Monday by two special parliamentary committees. 

After a week of bitter partisan fighting that, at times, turned physical, the ruling Democratic Party (DP) and three allied parties pushed the bills through two special parliamentary committees on political and judicial reform at around 11 p.m. in spite of vocal opposition by the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP).

In the process, the heads of both committees had to exercise their rights to send bodyguards into the meetings to restore order after LKP lawmakers tried again to physically obstruct votes from taking place. 

The bills included one on electoral reform, which would change the number of single-member districts and proportional representation seats in the legislature, and three on judicial reform, including a proposal to create a new agency to investigate corruption by high-ranking civil servants and another to adjust powers between the police and prosecutors. 

Prosecutor General Moon Moo-il on Wednesday openly voiced his opposition to the judicial reform bills in a rare show of disagreement with policy issues.

“Law enforcement procedures must function in accordance to democratic principles,” Moon said, according to a release by the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office. “But the bills that were fast-tracked at the National Assembly currently go against the democratic principle of checks and balances.”

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but this bill moves indictment powers from prosecutors and moves them to a special unit. If this special unit is staffed with political allies this would allow the Blue House to control who gets indicted and thus why this bill is so controversial.

According to the Blue House there is nothing to see here, move along:

President Moon Jae-in’s secretary for civil affairs said Monday that the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae has not surveilled civilians for political purposes, shrugging off a former investigator’s spying claim.
Controversy has flared up after Kim Tae-woo, a former special investigator at the presidential office, made the revelation that he had collected information, including info about civilians and former bureaucrats who should not be subject to Cheong Wa Dae surveillance.
Surveillance of civilians has been a sensitive issue in South Korea as former conservative governments were blamed for illegally spying on citizens for political purposes.
Cho Kuk, Moon’s top secretary for civil affairs, and Chief of Staff Im Jong-seok flatly rejected Kim’s claim at a meeting of the parliamentary steering committee that oversees Cheong Wa Dae. Kim was under Cho’s supervision.
It marked the first time since 2006 that a presidential secretary for civil affairs spoke at the parliamentary panel.
The revelation came after Kim was forced to return to his original post at the prosecution last month over an allegation that he sought to influence a police probe into a corruption case involving his acquaintance.
“The bottom line is that as Kim has become almost certain to face disciplinary actions due to his irregularities, he crafted a rare hoax by distorting the due work process into a political issue and trying to cover up his misconduct,” Cho told lawmakers.
The presidential civil affairs team under the Moon government has not surveilled civilians or drawn up blacklists (of people critical of the government) unlike other previous administrations),” he stressed.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.