Speculations mount of Yoon Suk Yeol's resignation

Impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol is facing growing speculation over the likelihood that he may voluntarily resign from his position before the Constitutional Court's verdict officially determines whether he is to be ousted.

Such speculations do not appear to be dying down, even as Yoon's lawyers ruled out any possibility of his resignation and South Korean law indicates that resignation is not a viable option for an incumbent president who is accused of leading a self-coup and faces both a criminal and an impeachment trial.

Rep. Park Jie-won of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea said on his Facebook account Sunday that Yoon is not eligible to step down voluntarily because any public official facing either criminal or impeachment charges cannot resign until the court finalizes its ruling.

"(Yoon's side) has suggested that his legal team resign or Yoon would resign, as it seems to predict that the Constitutional Court would uphold the motion to impeach," noted the five-term lawmaker. "It is too late (for Yoon's side) to make a choice."

In South Korea's modern history, Syngman Rhee, the first president of the country, was the only president to resign from his post, in April 1960. Former President Park Geun-hye also expressed her intention to resign in November 2016, but she could not do so before being impeached in December 2016.

Kim Sung-soo of law firm Gang Nam said in an interview with YTN on Sunday that should Yoon step down voluntarily, his declaration to do so would create another contention over legality. Article 134 of the National Assembly Act stipulates that upon the delivery of an impeachment resolution, the impeached party's power is suspended, and "appointing authorities shall not accept his or her resignation nor dismiss him or her." However, Yoon could be seen as exempt from this clause as he is not subject to an appointing authority.

This comes as Yoon's lawyer Yoon Kab-keun brought up the notion of a "grave decision" Thursday during Yoon's impeachment trial, without elaborating further.

While this prompted speculations that Yoon's legal representatives could resign en masse, condemning the justices of the Constitutional Court in the process, some right-wing commentators have claimed this could signal that Yoon might choose to resign, which would rally support from right-wing voters.

Cho Gap-je, a right-leaning journalist and entrepreneur, earlier claimed Yoon could soon announce his resignation to disturb the status quo ahead of the snap presidential election that would follow an abrupt end to Yoon's five-year term which began in May 2022.

"Yoon's determination to resign could trigger the public's sympathy, building public opinion favorable to the conservative party and anyone against the opposition leader (Rep. Lee Jae-myung)," Cho said Thursday in an interview with YTN.

"If Yoon's ouster is not something avoidable, Yoon's decision at a time when he was (regaining) popularity could be impactful," added Cho, who earlier endorsed former conservative party leader Han Dong-hoon.

This was in line with a column in the conservative newspaper Chosun Ilbo on Thursday, which demanded Yoon admit his wrongdoings. The column referred to the case of former US President Richard Nixon, who resigned from office in August 1974 and was granted an unconditional pardon a month later by his successor, Gerald Ford.

However, Yoon's legal team has denied any notion of the suspended president's resignation.

Kim Kye-ri, one of Yoon's lawyers, said Friday via Facebook that neither Yoon nor his lawyers had brought up his resignation, adding it would be nonsense for Yoon to offer to resign to protest the Constitutional Court's proceedings.