3 May. (EUROPE PRESS) –
Two members of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DP) have announced they are leaving the party after being embroiled in a corruption scandal over alleged bribery.
After a meeting with their party on Tuesday, Youn Kwan Suk and Lee Sung Man have announced their resignation, according to the Korean news agency Yonhap.
“I have many things to say, but I will sincerely clarify this problem through the investigation or due judicial process,” Youn said at a press conference after announcing his decision.
The corruption scandal centers on a series of accusations that point to the distribution of envelopes with money valued at 94 million won (about 70,000 euros) among party members to gain support.
The perpetrator of the alleged bribes would be Song Young Gil, former leader of the PD, who has come this Tuesday to appear before the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office for the alleged crimes, although the office has finally canceled the appearance, citing schedule problems.
Song has reproached the Prosecutor’s Office for “stop bothering the people around me and stop me”, once again assuming responsibility for the facts and apologizing, at the same time that he has accused the investigation of having been “orchestrated politically”.
These are the first resignations of the almost twenty people involved, who would have contributed to promoting Song as party leader at a convention held in 2021 –and which would have led him to occupy, precisely, the general secretary of the formation– .
The offices used by the Song campaign at the time have been the subject of raids and searches. Prosecutors suspect that Song may be personally involved in this bribery scheme.
