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At a face-to-face meeting with President Lee Myung-bak, former Grand National Party chief Park Geun-hye said people were openly saying the presidential office of Cheong Wa Dae was making phone calls to state prosecutors every day involving investigations into lawmakers close to her. She asked the president whether this was the right thing to do. Park added that biased and targeted investigations were taking place, whether by coincidence or not, aimed at lawmakers in particular regions and those who are loyal to her. She said these investigations would not cast a favorable light on the Lee administration if they are viewed as oppression of politicians.
Among the candidates elected during the recent general election and are being investigated by prosecutors for violating the Election Law, there are three who ran on the pro-Park ticket. They are Yang Jung-rye, Kim Il-yun and Hong Jang-pyo. Prosecutors already issued an arrest warrant for Kim on charges of bribing voters and he has been expelled from the Pro-Park Alliance. The mother of Yang, who topped the proportional seats in the Pro-Park Alliance, has been found to have paid W1.7 billion (US$1=W1,045) to the Pro-Park Alliance disguised as special party fees and loans, while Hong has been accused of spreading false information.
Park is saying that prosecutors are conducting biased investigations based on step-by-step instructions from Cheong Wa Dae. If ParkĄ¯s comments that Cheong Wa Dae was making phone calls to prosecutors every day, the presidential office is taking political revenge on its opponents using the state prosecution. This would make the public feel like fools for believing that their country had emerged from such outdated practices. If her comments are true, then the presidential office and the prosecution would be dealt fatal blows.
Due to the seriousness of the situation, it is necessary for Park to reveal more details regarding her claims that prosecutors were targeting specific individuals. Right now, the comments being made by the president and Park are completely different. Park says the president told her he would check to see if any wrongdoing has occurred and would rectify things if that turns out to be the case. Her comments leave the impression that the president may have acknowledged the fact that there may be a problem. But Cheong Wa Dae says the presidentĄ¯s comments were an expression of dismay at the fact that prosecutors could be doing something like that and that he would look into the claim since they could lead to possible misunderstandings. If Park does not make clearer comments at this point in time, she could be mistaken for trying to pressure prosecutors from pursuing their investigations by using to her benefit the attention the cases have drawn from the public.
If Cheong Wa Dae is indeed giving instruction to prosecutors, then it would be a major problem. But if Park is trying to pressure prosecutors to halt their investigations, then this is something that cannot be ignored either. The truth is bound to emerge no matter how hard one tries to bury it.
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