The People Power Party criticized the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee for forcing questioning of Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae during the Supreme Court audit, calling it "public shaming" and "a people's court."
People Power Party Floor Leader Song Eon-seok said at a meeting on measures for the national audit held at the National Assembly on the morning of the 14th, "Yesterday (13th), Chairperson Choo Mi-ae and the ruling party's confinement of Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae amounted to public shaming and a people's court led by hard-line lawmakers."
He added, "After the greeting in line with precedent, as Chief Justice Cho tried to leave, they detained him in the chamber, and ruling party lawmakers took turns unleashing various allegations at the level of 'jjirasi' and remarks tantamount to character assassination. The public cannot contain their shock," stressing, "No dictatorship in the past ever did something so lawless."
Song also said, "Senior Presidential Secretary for Political Affairs Woo Sang-ho said there is a temperature gap between the party and the presidential office, and the dominant analysis is that it was a warning message, but judging from the Legislation and Judiciary Committee situation, the presidential office's warning is like reading a sutra to a cow," adding, "Has President Lee Jae-myung fallen into a lame-duck phase, unable to control the ruling party's Taliban-level hardliners?"
The People Power Party also stressed the need for a special counsel in the case of the Yangpyeong public official who died while being questioned by Special Counsel Min Joong-ki's team investigating suspicions surrounding Kim Keon-hee. Because the deceased's memo contained details of the special counsel's coercive investigation, they asked the ruling party to cooperate.
Floor Leader Song said, "Special Counsel Min Joong-ki says he will review the overall investigation methods in the wake of the Yangpyeong public official's extreme choice. It looks like locking the barn after losing the cow," adding, "To clearly uncover the truth about Special Counsel Min Joong-ki's coercive investigation and alleged fabricated indictment, a rigorous investigation through the introduction of a separate special counsel is unavoidable."