Legislator to quit after conviction

Representative Kang Sam-jae of the opposition Grand National Party said yesterday he would give up his National Assembly seat and resign from politics altogether, following his conviction and four-year jail sentence for malfeasance on Tuesday.
Mr. Kang, in Masan, South Gyeongsang, said, “Though I cannot accept the Seoul Court’s decision, I will step down because normal political activity has become too difficult. The court has stripped me of my moral integrity as a public official.”
The Seoul District Court also fined Mr. Kang 73.1 billion won ($64 million) for diverting intelligence agency funds to members of the then-ruling New Korea Party to finance their 1996 National Assembly campaigns.
When Mr. Kang formally resigns, a plenary session of the National Assembly will vote on the case according to the National Assembly law. Hong Sa-duk, floor leader of the Grand National Party, said, “The party will persuade Mr. Kang into changing his mind before the voting.”
Separately, the prosecution announced that it would summon Kim Deog-ryong, a Grand National lawmaker, for questioning about his involvement in the same case.

by Lee Sang-il, Kang Joo-an