Cho Kuk Fights Back with Escort Photo of His Own, Demands Apology from Park Chul-woo
Cho Kuk, head of the Innovation Policy Research Institute, directly rebutted the claims of independent lawmaker Ahn Dong-hoon by digging up old photos of former President Yoon Suk-yeol and Park Chul-woo, chief prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office. On the 22nd, Cho posted on Facebook a photo taken in August 2019 when former Prosecutor General Yoon visited the National Assembly, and pointed to Park standing behind Yoon in the photo, asking, "So does that make Park Chul-woo the 'closest aide who personally escorted Yoon Suk-yeol'?" — turning the tables on Ahn's 'closest aide prosecutor' claim.
The dispute began with Ahn's assertion. Ahn said Park had personally escorted Cho as his 'closest aide prosecutor,' and when Cho denied it, Ahn countered late on the 20th by presenting a seven-year-old photo of the two together at the National Assembly along with news reports, saying, "The people will judge who is lying." Cho dismissed this as "ridiculous" in a statement to OhmyNews on the 21st, and just a day later launched a direct counterattack with the photo.
Cho explained that the scene in the photo was merely an official duty escort. At the time, prosecutors assigned to the National Assembly were tasked with guiding visitors such as the justice minister or prosecutor general. "Prosecutor Park merely guided me to a relevant space inside the National Assembly," he said, adding, "To say it again, I have never shared a single meal with him."
In the post, Cho also criticized Ahn directly. "He must have been smiling while digging up photos like this," he said, calling it "ridiculous agitation." Referencing reports that former President Yoon once praised Ahn as "better at media play than me," Cho remarked, "A leopard can't change its spots, apparently."
Cho continued with remarks directed at Park. "He seems very sensitive, anxious, and fearful of Park Chul-woo these days, and is desperate to smear him in any way he can," he said. He then demanded, "Lawmaker Ahn Dong-hoon, if you have any sense of propriety, you should apologize to Park Chul-woo, chief prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office."
Attached at the end of the post were two photos from the scene of a fire at the Seocheon specialty market in South Chungcheong Province on January 23, 2024, showing Ahn Dong-hoon, then emergency response committee chairman of the People Power Party, bowing deeply in greeting to former President Yoon Suk-yeol. Cho added a caption: "If he were truly a 'closest aide,' Ahn Dong-hoon in the attached photo should have greeted him the way he does with Yoon Suk-yeol."
