Cheong Wa Dae Says Cho Kuk Mentioned 'Accepting Supplementary Investigation' Last Year, Urging Unity in Completing Prosecution Reform

▲ Cheong Wa Dae

Cheong Wa Dae has issued a counter-rebuttal after the Rebuilding Korea Party pushed back against President Lee Jae-myung's comments addressing key contentious issues among ruling bloc supporters surrounding prosecution reform, including the authority for supplementary investigations.

In a notice issued under the name of the spokesperson's office, Cheong Wa Dae explained, "Cho Kuk, director of the Innovation Policy Research Institute, appeared on the YouTube channel 'Jang Yoon-sun's Coverage Convenience Store' on August 29 last year and personally stated, with conditions attached, that 'his position is that supplementary investigations must be recognized.'"

It also pointed out, "In the case of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, they previously advocated placing it under the Ministry of Justice, but later changed their party line to place it under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety."

Cheong Wa Dae added, "The Rebuilding Korea Party itself has stated that it altered the substantive details of its prosecution reform proposals depending on realities and circumstances," noting that "the detailed design of prosecution reform has been adjusted in accordance with the discussion process and changing circumstances."

It continued, "President Lee's post on X (formerly Twitter) meant that the overarching purpose and direction of prosecution reform aimed for an irreversible transformation of the prosecution organization and achieved it, and this intent has never changed since the presidential campaign pledges," adding, "Rather than clinging trivially to minor differences regarding prosecution reform, we ask them to join the process of bringing the already irreversibly progressed reform to a high-quality completion."

Earlier, President Lee wrote in a post on X, "Not only the Rebuilding Korea Party, but most advocates of prosecution reform argued for placing the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency in charge of investigations and the Public Prosecution Office in charge of indictments under the Ministry of Justice," along with "arguments to grant the Public Prosecution Office the authority to conduct supplementary investigations."

In response, Park Byung-eon, senior spokesperson for the Rebuilding Korea Party, rebutted in a press release that while the party had introduced a bill in 2024 to place both the Public Prosecution Office and the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency under the Ministry of Justice, it subsequently underwent procedures to alter the party platform to place the investigation agency under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and argued that it had advocated for the right to demand supplementary investigations, not the authority to conduct them directly.

The follow-up notice issued by Cheong Wa Dae is interpreted as correcting certain factual aspects by citing Director Cho's past remarks, while emphasizing that the core issue lies in raising the substantive completion of the reform rather than whether specific details were modified.

(Photo: Yonhap News)

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