The Constitutional Court actively intervened in the questioning process during the impeachment trial of President Park Geun-hye on Thursday, in an apparent attempt to quicken the proceedings. 

During the 12th hearing of the trial, justices interrupted both legal representatives of the president and the parliament several times and asked for “efficiency” in the questioning process, taking issue with their repetitive and unclear questions. 

“He already answered the question. The purpose of the question is unclear. You should ask him what he know and experienced,” acting Chief Justice Lee Jung-mi instructed Park’s lawyers as they questioned Jo Seong-min, head of The Blue-K. 

The change in the court’s attitude is seen as a veiled swipe at Park’s apparent attempt to prolong the proceedings. 

“I don’t understand why you are going over investigation records here. You should ask questions related to the impeachment. There are too many unnecessary questions,” Justice Kang Il-won said to the lawyers. “You are even asking questions disadvantaging the president.”

The hearing came amid spiraling rumors the court is set to reject the impeachment after it decided to add three more hearings through Feb. 22 to bring in eight more witnesses, as requested by Park’s lawyers.  

Acting Chief Justice Lee, who took over the top post after former Chief Justice Park Han-chul’s term ended on Jan. 31, expressed her determination to hear the case in a “fair” and “strict” manner. But she made no mention of a “speedy” ruling, mindful of backlash from Park’s lawyers.   

Former Chief Justice Park, at his retirement ceremony, called for the ruling to be made before Justice Lee steps down, saying a further absence of a justice could lead to a “distorted ruling.” President Park’s ouster requires the approval of at least six judges from the court that normally seats nine. 

The president’s lawyers fiercely protested the remarks, saying setting such a deadline was not fair and asked the court to appoint successors to the outgoing justices to ensure “fairness.” They even hinted at a possible boycott of the trial if their demands were not met. 

Prolonging the court proceedings has been seen as the best shot for President Park to rally her core supporters and maintain her status as being immune from criminal liability during an ongoing investigation by an independent counsel looking into the scandal. 

During the hearing, The Blue-K head Jo appeared before the court and pointed to Choi Soon-sil, Park’s longtime friend, as the de facto owner of the entity. 

The Blue-K was allegedly set up and controlled by Choi, who is on trial for coercing donations from local firms to the Mir and K-Sports foundations with the intention to siphon off the donations for her personal gains. 

“My employer in the employment contract was Choi. The person who made decisions on the budget execution was Choi,” he said. “Under her order, the president was sacked and the secretary-general briefed her about their work, so I thought the entity was under Choi’s control. 

He also said Park is involved in The Blue-K. 

“I thought there must be someone behind this after the presidential secretary and culture vice minister took interest in our project. So I reasonably assumed that Park and Choi were connected. “

Choi has denied any involvement in controlling the foundation. 

By Ock Hyun-ju (laeticia.ock@heraldcorp.com)