Report: The second day of the National Assembly interpellation session on Tuesday was mired in power abuse allegations against Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae.
Opposition lawmakers grilled Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo over suspicions that the justice minister used her political influence to obtain preferential treatment for her son during his military service.
The defense chief was pressed by opposition Rep. Ha Tae-kyung to apologize to soldiers who were not entitled to the same benefits Choo's son received under similar circumstances.
[Sound bite: National Assembly question-and-answer session (September 15, 2020)]
Rep. Ha Tae-kyung: "Most citizens did not receive the same kind of benefits as Private First Class Seo..."
"Apologize to those youth and the public here."
Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo: "I would like to repeat that all Defense Ministry directives and regulations apply equally to those who dedicate themselves to the country in their mandatory service. They are not to provide privilege to a particular individual."
Rep. Ha Tae-kyung: "Didn't you just confirm that all those youth who did not have Choo Mi-ae as mother had disadvantages?"
Before becoming the nation’s justice minister, Choo served as the ruling Democratic Party chair from 2016 to 2018. The period coincides with her son’s 21-month conscription into the Korean Augmentation to the United States Army or KATUSA.
Her son is suspected of failing to return to his base without obtaining prior approval for an extra four days of sick leave after knee surgery in 2017.
There were also alleged requests for Seo to be selected by the military as an interpreter at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
Choo also faces allegations that she sought to make her son's life cushier by attempting to get him transferred from a U.S. military base north of Seoul to the U.S. garrison in Seoul's central Yongsan district.
Defense Minister Jeong said that though the extension of Seo's sick leave was made properly under Army regulations, there were mistakes in the follow-up documentation procedures.
Prosecutors on Tuesday raided the Defense Ministry as part of their investigation into the power abuse scandal, seeking to obtain digital data regarding approval for Seo's extra leave.
Kim Bum-soo, KBS World Radio News.