[Anchor]

The Democratic Party of Korea has officially formalized its stance to review the impeachment of Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae. Voices from within the party say that Chief Justice Cho has crossed the point of no return, while the People Power Party criticized that the real objective is to block the resumption of trials involving President Lee Jae-myung.

Reporter Ha Jeongyeon reports.

[Reporter]

Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party, stated yesterday (October 16) that the party has begun discussions on pursuing the impeachment of Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae.

[Kim Min-seok / Democratic Party Leader (YouTube 'DPK TV') : "Because there are already widespread demands regarding even the first letter of 'impeachment,' we have put all matters on the table and begun discussions...."]

Targeting Chief Justice Cho, the Democratic Party had previously engaged in a public opinion campaign to pressure him into resigning voluntarily while maintaining a cautious stance on pursuing impeachment, but it has now placed the "impeachment card" on the table as an option.

Within the Democratic Party, Chief Justice Cho's refusal to re-recommend Supreme Court justice appointments, refusal to take an oath during the parliamentary audit, and allegations of improper use of special activity expenses are cited as grounds for impeachment.

Calls for immediate impeachment have also grown louder within the party:

[Park Gyun-taek / Democratic Party Lawmaker (YouTube 'DPK TV') : "We must impeach him; at the very least, the time has clearly come to review it. Refusing to take the witness oath (at the parliamentary audit) constitutes a violation of the National Assembly Act, which I believe is sufficient grounds for impeachment."]

One lawmaker also told SBS, "With the parliamentary audit as a turning point, Chief Justice Cho has crossed the point of no return," adding, "We judged that there is no room for repentance."

The Rebuilding Korea Party went so far as to propose a joint introduction of an impeachment bill to the Democratic Party.

On the other hand, the People Power Party claimed that the Democratic Party's real purpose is to suspend Chief Justice Cho from his duties to prevent him from exercising his personnel appointment powers, thereby blocking the resumption of trials involving President Lee Jae-myung.

[Jeong Jeom-sig / People Power Party Floor Leader : "If you are confident, go ahead and impeach Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae. The moment an impeachment bill is introduced, the president will fall into 'dead duck' status (a loss of power more severe than a lame duck)."]

For the National Assembly to impeach a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, approval from a majority of all registered lawmakers is required, and the Democratic Party, which holds a majority with 161 seats, can pass the impeachment bill on its own.

If an impeachment motion passes, the Constitutional Court will make the final decision on whether to remove him from office.

(Video by Shin Dong-hwan | Video Editing by Jang Hyeon-gi)