President Moon Jae-in once again emphasized the importance of reforming the nation's prosecution.
This comes amid intensifying investigation on the fraud and corruption scandal surrounding his Justice Minister.
Park Hee-jun shares with us the South Korean leader's remarks. President Moon Jae-in has called for an extensive shake-up of the prosecution in response to growing demand from the public.
Referring to the ongoing investigation surrounding Justice Minister Cho Kuk,... presidential spokesperson Ko Min-jung told reporters Friday... that President Moon stressed the need for prosecution reform that changes how prosecutions and investigations are carried out.
"We ask the prosecution to reflect on the reality that demands for reform are increasing... despite the fact that they're now engaged in a strict, full-fledged investigation without any interference."
And President Moon added that it's important to respect human rights,... as the prosecution exerts power directly over the people.
When asked why Friday's briefing was given, the spokesperson said there is no particular reason.
These are the president's first official remarks on the corruption investigation,... and they were apparently aimed at protecting Cho against the active push for his removal.
They're also being viewed as an indirect warning to the prosecution's controversial probe of the allegations surrounding Cho and his family -- the most recent incident being their raid of his home earlier in the week.
President Moon says whether the justice minister is held responsible,... will be determined only by judicial procedures.
But in the meantime, he asked for state affairs to be carried out regardless of the probe.
Park Hee-jun, Arirang News.