Cho Kyoung-tae to File Injunction to Suspend Party Membership Suspension

Rep. Cho Kyoung-tae of the People Power Party said on the 13th that he has filed an injunction with the court to suspend the 2-year-and-6-month party membership suspension imposed on him — a request asking the court to halt the disciplinary action until it rules on its validity — and that he will also file a main lawsuit to have the disciplinary action declared invalid.

Cho received the 2-year-and-6-month suspension from the party's ethics committee on August 20 on charges that he had campaigned against Park Duk-hyum, a fellow party member, in the process of electing the opposition's deputy speaker of the National Assembly. The disciplinary action bars him from running in the 2028 general election as a People Power Party candidate.

Cho had previously taken the position that he would not pursue legal action, but changed course. The trigger was a claim made on the 11th by Ethics Committee member Hwang Kyung-sang, to the effect that 'the ethics committee's disciplinary action was fabricated.' Cho also denied the grounds for the disciplinary action itself.

Cho said, "(Hwang's) act of conscience was met with the brazenness of Chairman Jang Dong-hyuk criticizing him," adding, "Jang's telling me to take the matter to court made me realize this was no longer an issue that could be resolved politically." He countered, "The party is holding protests in front of the Blue House against what it calls fabricated indictments. Do those who remain silent about suspicions of a fabricated disciplinary action have the standing to speak out about fabricated indictments?"

Cho demanded the immediate formation of an independent fact-finding committee to investigate the suspicions of a fabricated disciplinary action. He argued that if the allegations prove true, the party leadership, including Chairman Jang Dong-hyuk, must immediately apologize and resign.