'First head of serious crimes agency was on same boat as Han Dong-hoon'

Sharp words at democracy martyrs' memorial

President Lee Jae Myung (right) greets Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae at the 10th Central-Local Cooperation Conference held at Cheong Wa Dae on Aug. 26. [Yonhap]
President Lee Jae Myung (right) greets Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae at the 10th Central-Local Cooperation Conference held at Cheong Wa Dae on Aug. 26. [Yonhap]

Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae leveled sharp criticism at President Lee Jae Myung on Saturday, seizing on the controversy over a retreat from prosecution reform and the appointment of the inaugural head of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency.

Speaking without notes at a memorial service for victims of the pro-democracy movement held at Moran Park cemetery in Namyangju, Choo opened her remarks by asking, "How can democratization be achieved without resolving the contradiction of a prosecution that holds both investigative and indictment powers?"

She then turned directly to the nomination of Kim Ji-yong as the agency's first director, asking pointedly, "Is it democratization for someone who was on the same boat as Han Dong-hoon to become the inaugural head of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency?" She added that she could not help but ask "whether that is truly serving the will of the sovereign people."

Choo went further, naming Lee directly. "If the people united their strength to overcome the insurrection and restore constitutional order, the president must punish those forces — why is he clinging to them and cowering?" she said. "The president must apologize before the spirits of the fallen for failing to fulfill his duty."

She closed by saying she had taken the podium "not as governor of Gyeonggi Province, but as a conscience of this era." The remarks came shortly after Lee used social media to caution against radical incitement and an overly rushed pace of reform, and are expected to sharpen tensions within the ruling camp over the direction of prosecution reform and internal leadership.


hwshin@heraldcorp.com