Han Jung-ae, policy committee chair of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, dismissed claims of a secret deal between the government and prosecutors over President Lee Jae-myung's indictment as "absurd beyond belief" on Sunday.
"The more politically significant a claim is, the stricter the evidentiary standards required—so why take such a conspiratorial approach?" Han wrote on Facebook.
"Packaging unverifiable anonymous tips as fact and circulating them in public discourse abandons the basic principles of journalism," she said. "It's hard to rule out the possibility this was strategically used to reinforce certain arguments within the political context of prosecution reform debates."
Han expressed anger that "the maximum interpretation of direct presidential involvement was assumed when it's not even clear whether this represents 'the president's will' or is a false claim made in his name."
"How many attacks has our president endured from not only prosecutors but also distorted media coverage?" she added.
Party spokesperson Baek Seung-ah also posted on Facebook: "Evidence of fabricated prosecution in President Lee's case is emerging, and the Democratic Party plans to submit a request for a parliamentary investigation. There is no reason to negotiate behind closed doors over dropping charges."
"The administration is not even a year old. Let's talk about facts, not groundless conspiracy theories," Baek said.
The controversy erupted after former MBC reporter Jang In-su appeared on Kim Ou-joon's YouTube show Saturday, claiming that "a senior government official who can only be seen as President Lee's closest aide recently delivered messages to multiple high-ranking prosecutors saying 'drop the charges.'"
