Hong Joon-pyo, the mayor of Daegu, criticized Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl on the 23rd, saying, “The behavior is just like the internal conflicts of the prosecution during the Moon Jae-in administration.” Mayor Hong stated in a Facebook post on that day, “In August 1997, when Kim Hyun-chul, the son of President Kim Young-sam, was arrested, Prosecutor General Kim Ki-soo, who appointed him as prosecutor general, immediately submitted his resignation expressing regret to the president who appointed him.”
Mayor Hong took aim at the prosecutor general’s public statement, saying, “Retiring prosecutor general who conducted a private investigation of the president’s wife in a third place should apologize to the entire nation and give an instruction for inspection,” and questioned, “Is it the right behavior of a leader of the prosecution organization to embarrass the president’s wife in public?”
He further emphasized, “One should become a legal professional who at least shows proper etiquette before the law,” and criticized, “Isn’t resolving internal issues of the prosecution organization privately more appropriate as the leader of the prosecution organization?” He raised his voice, saying, “The behavior is just like the internal conflicts of the prosecution during the Moon Jae-in administration. If this continues, the prosecution will lose all investigative authority and be doomed.”
Previously, the prosecutor general had stated while reporting to the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office the day before, “I have said that there are no exceptions, privileges, or holy cows before our law, but this principle was not observed during the process of investigating the president’s wife, and ultimately, promises to the public were not kept.” He also said, “I did not receive any reports from local prosecution offices, but not properly leading the local prosecution offices is all my responsibility. I deeply apologize.”