Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon and Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Geon-tae were set to engage in a debate regarding the issue of abolishing the prosecutorial investigative authority, but Lee reversed his decision just one day later.
On July 18, Lee announced on Facebook, "I judged that it is not right to ignore the wishes and concerns of the party members who support me," stating, "I will not proceed with this debate."
Previously, on July 16, Han proposed a public debate to the Democratic Party, asking, "Why is the abolition of the prosecutorial investigative authority against the public interest?" In response, Lee agreed to discuss why the prosecution should not have investigative authority in front of the public, leading to the arrangement of the debate.
Lee explained, "The reason I agreed to the debate was that I believe Han Dong-hoon is responsible for leading politically motivated prosecutions alongside Yoon Seok-yeol. I wanted to clearly question that responsibility before the public."
In response, Han accused Lee of backing out of the debate, stating, "I heard that Democratic politicians and some supporters pressured him to run away because they feared being overwhelmed in the debate. A public party is finished if it is embarrassed. The Democratic Party is done."
Meanwhile, both sides had tentatively agreed to hold the debate on July 22 at 5 p.m. on JTBC, but Lee's announcement on the same day led to the cancellation of the event.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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