Jung Chung-rae of the Democratic Party of Korea said he is carefully considering the timing of announcing a bid for party leader. He again stressed that the revision to the Criminal Procedure Act should completely abolish prosecutors' supplemental investigation authority.
On the afternoon of the 3rd in Yongsan District, Seoul, at a Democratic Party workshop, Jung, asked by reporters "When will you decide to run for the party leadership?", said, "I am still carefully considering it." He did not answer the follow-up question, "What are you carefully considering?"
Regarding the Criminal Procedure Act revision, Jung said, "It is my position that the supplemental investigation authority must be completely abolished, and it is a firm, unshakable, immortal principle," adding, "Abolishing the supplemental investigation authority conforms to the grand principle of prosecutorial reform to separate investigation from indictment."
He added, "The moment prosecutors are given supplemental investigation authority, it opens a gap for de facto reinvestigations, additional investigations, planned investigations, and retaliatory investigations across all areas," and said, "Coal gas seeps in through a small hole. This time we must perfectly block the coal gas hole."
On the dispute over the truth regarding the 'government's proposal to handle the Criminal Procedure Act in May,' he said, "There is talk that the government asked in May to abolish the supplemental investigation authority and the party refused, but I have never heard such a proposal," adding, "No bill was even submitted, and I have never seen one."
He went on, "I don't think there is any need to talk about this with Kim Min-seok, the former prime minister," and stressed, "If the government wants a bill handled at a certain time, it should request it while submitting that bill, but there was no such thing."