For the first time in constitutional history, Choi Jae-hae, the President of the Board of Audit and Inspection, has avoided impeachment by the National Assembly.

This decision comes 98 days after the impeachment motion was filed with the Constitutional Court on December 5 of last year. The effect of this verdict by the court is immediate.

On the 13th, the Constitutional Court unanimously dismissed the impeachment motion against President Choi with 8 judges. President Choi will retain his position.

Previously, President Choi was referred to impeachment proceedings for allegations of inadequate audits regarding the relocation of the presidential office and residence, as well as targeted audits against Jeon Hyun-hee, the former Chairperson of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (currently a Member of Parliament).

In particular, he was criticized by the National Assembly for allegedly conducting illegal targeted audits tailored to the preferences of the presidential office against the former chairperson.

President Choi stated that the reasons for his impeachment were either false or distorted.

In this regard, the Constitutional Court concluded that “it is difficult to judge the audits as biased.”

Meanwhile, Choi Jae-hae was born in 1956 and graduated from Sungkyunkwan University with a degree in Public Administration. He has served for a long time at the Board of Audit and Inspection, holding positions as Secretary General and Audit Commissioner.

He was appointed as the 25th President of the Board of Audit and Inspection in November 2021, making him the first president in the agency’s history to be appointed from within.

However, following the inauguration of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, controversies regarding the political neutrality of the Board of Audit and Inspection have emerged, placing him at the center of significant disputes regarding his impeachment by the National Assembly.

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