Opposition at crossroads

• Published date: 28 February 2023
• Publication title: The Korea Times

Prosecutors sought an arrest warrant for Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) Chairman Rep. Lee Jae-myung on charges of corruption and bribery Thursday. Lee has been accused of breaching his duties, infringing upon laws pertinent to conflicts of interest, taking bribes and hiding profits generated from crimes. This is the first time that the prosecutors filed a warrant against the leader of the main opposition party.

Well aware of the significance, Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok took to the podium in person to defend the prosecution's decision referring to the "illegal collusion between real estate developers and local power brokers" and the "sharing of astronomical profits." The investigation team also stressed that the probes are addressing issues from when Lee was the mayor of Seongnam and not the opposition party leader.

On Saturday, the ruling People Power Party (PPP) and the DPK agreed to convene a National Assembly plenary session on Feb. 27 to deal with the motion for the possible arrest of Lee. Yet the bipartisan bickering is expected to intensify further ahead of the crucial vote. Lee was the presidential candidate of the DPK against then PPP rival President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Prosecutors accused Lee of inflicting a 489.5 billion won ($376 million) loss on Seongnam Development Corp. by issuing an order to change rules on extra profits when he served as Seongnam mayor. They also claim Lee received 13.35 billion won in bribes from Naver and Doosan when he headed the Seongnam FC football team, in return for offering favors to them.

Lee retorted, "It is a day when the Yoon Suk Yeol dictatorship has privatized the prosecution's authority for its benefit." Lee billed the prosecution move as a suppression of political opponents by the incumbent government, reminiscent of the autocracy seen under former President Chun Doo-hwan's regime. But Lee says he never received even a penny.

Given Lee's status as a lawmaker with the right to avoid arrest, the ball is now in the National...