Joo Jinwoo to Sponsor 'Lee Jae-myung Golf Special Prosecutor Act'... "Disclose President's Movements During National Disasters"

Golf Allegations Raised During Navy Sailor's Disappearance
"Investigation Should Also Examine Funding Sources and Preferential Treatment for the President's Family"

Joo Jinwoo, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, said on Oct. 13 that he would introduce a special prosecutor bill titled the “Lee Jae-myung Imperial Golf Special Prosecutor Act,” alleging that President Lee Jae-myung played golf during a national disaster. He said the investigation should examine whether he received preferential treatment in using the golf course, where the money to cover the costs came from, and whether he neglected his duties.

At a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Center that day, Joo said, “The president keeps playing imperial golf whenever a national tragedy occurs,” adding, “This conduct is completely out of step with public expectations.”

People Power Party lawmaker Joo Jinwoo. Courtesy of Yonhap News.

Referring to Lee’s use of a golf course on Oct. 10, when a ceiling collapsed in Daegu, Joo said, “He gave the absurd instruction to rescue people who had already been rescued.”

He continued, “He also stayed at the same golf course for about nine hours when a Navy sailor went missing on July 12,” and argued, “The reason he cannot disclose his movements in July, despite spending time at the golf course just the same, is that missing the golden time for the search was a painful failure and he has nothing to say to the public.”

The bill would authorize an investigation into whether the president played golf during a disaster and whether he neglected his duties in connection with it. It also proposes investigating the president’s family’s use of golf courses and any preferential treatment they received, as well as the possibility that special activity funds were used to cover golf course expenses.

Joo said allegations of budget waste involving the president’s family residence at the official residence and the relocation to the Blue House should also be included in the special prosecutor’s investigation. “If spaces were created for the president’s children to live in during the Blue House relocation, or construction costs were inflated, that should be investigated,” he said.

He also pushed back against criticism from Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, who took issue that day with Joo’s social media post. “I meant that if the golf issue cannot be properly explained, it could be grounds for impeaching the president,” he said. “Threats such as filing a complaint with the ethics committee against an opposition lawmaker are threats against the public.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.