Opposition Lodges, Prosecutors’ Investigation “Bias”

The Grand National Party (GNP) and Millennium Democratic Party (MDP) yesterday has lodged the matter of discrimination in the prosecutors’ investigation into presidential campaign financing.

GNP leader Choe Byung-yul urged at the standing management committee held that day, “Who will believe the investigation that President Roh Moo-hyun’s side had not received even a penny from the five groups during the election? The prosecutors’ investigation on presidential campaign funding should also be conducted on the part of President Roh Moo-hyun.”

Rep. Choe asserted, “It is common sense that if the prosecutors arrested Kim Young-iel, former secretary-general who was in charge of the campaign funds, lawmaker Lee Sang-soo of the Uri Party, who had the same role on the part of President Roh Moo-hyun, should also be arrested.” Relating to this, Lee Kang-too, chairman of GNP policy planning committee, reported, “To prevent the discriminating investigation of prosecutors, we will strongly push to establish a prosecution department specially investigating into the corruption scandals of superior officials including the president.”

GNP, through the material its strategic planning committee made out, advocated, “The illegal presidential campaign funds on the part of President Roh is approximately 8.2 billion won, and has passed the one tenth level of the GNP’s illegal funds (53 billion won).”

MDP leader Chough Soon-hyung also warned, “If the prosecutors’ investigation loses its fairness and equilibrium, we may propose a special act on the campaign funds.”

Rep. Chough, at the central standing committee, said, “There were results obtained on the investigation of GNP, who had lost in the election, but no progress on the part of President Roh. Are the prosecutors conscious of President Roh’s speaking of ‘one tenth,’ and deliberately evading the investigation?”

Hyung-gwon Pu Myoung-Gun Lee bookum90@donga.com gun43@donga.com