Lee's first audit to start amid PPP calls for Jo to attend as witness
Published: 13 Oct. 2025, 07:00
![Chief Justice Jo Hee-de walks into the Supreme Court building in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Oct. 10. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/10/13/c2720db6-3df9-4dd9-a2ac-4fd50fb712ba.jpg)
Chief Justice Jo Hee-de walks into the Supreme Court building in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Oct. 10. [YONHAP]
Korea’s first parliamentary audit under President Lee Jae Myung’s administration begins Monday and will continue through Nov. 6, covering 17 standing committees. As it takes place just four months into the new administration, the audit will address both Lee’s policies and those from the previous administration under Yoon Suk Yeol.
The Democratic Party (DP) has vowed to “fix what was broken under the previous administration and complete the reforms,” as DP Chair Jung Ching-rae put it, while the People Power Party (PPP) has declared it will “reveal the full scope of incompetence and mismanagement under the Lee government,” according to PPP Chair Jang Dong-hyeok — setting the stage for fierce political clashes.
The most contentious battleground is expected to be the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, particularly during the audit of the Supreme Court. In a rare move, the Supreme Court audit will be held in two sessions — one at the National Assembly on Monday and another on-site at the Supreme Court on Wednesday. The DP-led resolution to conduct the on-site audit was passed on Sept. 30.
The DP is demanding an investigation into how the Supreme Court’s Grand Bench reached its May 1 ruling to overturn the acquittal in President Lee’s election law violation case and return it to a lower court with instructions to convict. The DP has summoned Chief Justice Jo Hee-de as a witness and is pressuring him to appear.
“If he refuses to attend, we will proceed in accordance with the National Assembly Act, just as we would with any other witness,” said DP Supreme Council member Jeon Hyun-heui, signaling the possibility of issuing a summons order.
No chief justice has ever appeared as a witness in a parliamentary audit. The typical practice is for the chief justice to attend briefly at the start, with the Court Administration Office answering most questions. Nevertheless, the DP ramped up pressure on Jo again on Sunday.
![Choo Mi-ae, head of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, convenes a committee meeting at the National Assembly in western Seoul on Sept. 30. [LIM HYUN-DONG]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/10/13/7ffb8ab3-94e9-43f5-af37-ba0104efc333.jpg)
Choo Mi-ae, head of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, convenes a committee meeting at the National Assembly in western Seoul on Sept. 30. [LIM HYUN-DONG]
“How can judicial independence and public trust be upheld?” wrote Rep. Jung in a Facebook post. “Only when rulings are made based on the Constitution, the law and the judge’s conscience, and the public believes that to be true. Chief Justice Jo’s ruling fails to meet both criteria, according to public opinion.”
DP chief spokesperson Park Soo-hyun also urged Jo to appear, saying, “The public wants answers about the rushed remand ruling against President Lee. This is not the time to hide behind the lofty language of separation of powers,” and added, “Chief Justice Jo has no right to invoke such democratic ideals.”
The PPP pushed back. “This is a blatant violation of the separation of powers and a serious constitutional breach,” said PPP chief spokesperson Choi Bo-yoon, calling the DP’s pressure on the court “an unprecedented act of tyranny.”
The parties are also at odds over the DP’s proposals to increase the number of Supreme Court justices and establish a special panel for insurrection-related cases — plans the PPP calls “not judicial reform but judicial annihilation,” warning that “the ruling party is trying to rise above the Constitution just because it holds power.”
Beyond the Supreme Court, the judiciary committee will also scrutinize the Justice Ministry and the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, with contentious issues such as the separation of investigative and prosecutorial powers expected to come up.
In the House Steering Committee, attention is focused on whether Kim Hyun-ji, a key aide to President Lee and head of the First Presidential Secretariat, will be summoned as a witness. The PPP claims Kim holds outsized influence within the administration, referring to her as “the real power behind the throne,” and is pressing for her appearance. However, the DP is likely to oppose the move, citing the lack of precedent for summoning a first secretary. The committee is expected to make a final decision on her appearance during its full session on Wednesday.
Elsewhere, clashes are expected in the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee and the Public Administration and Security Committee over issues including the potential dissolution of the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) and the recent arrest of former KCC chair Lee Jin-sook.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY HAN YEONG-IK [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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