(2nd LD) President rejects chief prosecutor`s resignation

(ATTN: RECASTS headline, lead; UPDATES throughout with background details)
By Shin Hae-in, Byun Duk-kun
SEOUL, June 3 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Myung-bak rejected the resignation of the
top prosecutor, who offered to step down Wednesday amid growing public anger over
the recent suicide of former president Roh Moo-hyun who was under a
prosecution-led investigation.
"There have recently been many claims and controversies about the responsibility
of the prosecution (for the death of Roh), but a prosecution investigation must
be conducted based on law, not public opinion," said Lee Dong-kwan, spokesman for
the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae.
Prosecutor General Lim Chae-jin tendered his resignation for the second time on
Wednesday, saying he is no longer able to carry out his duties. He had offered to
quit on the same day that former President Roh took his own life on May 23, but
the justice minister rejected the move.
"He is responsible for directing all prosecution investigations, and Cheong Wa
Dae is asking him to withdraw his resignation because it believes it is
appropriate for him to stay in the post at least until the investigation is
complete," the spokesman told reporters.
"Efforts to root out corruption by those in office or power must not falter under
any circumstances," he added.
Former President Roh leaped to his death from a mountainside precipice above his
rural hometown in Bongha Village, some 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul. He was
62.
Roh and his wife were summoned and questioned by the prosecution for their
alleged involvement in a corruption scandal in which they are believed to have
received millions of dollars from a local businessman.
His death led to an outpouring of grief that was followed by days of mourning as
people lined up in the thousands nationwide to pay tribute to the late leader, a
self-taught lawyer who struggled to reform the political establishment during his
2003-2008 presidency.
Roh's death also dealt a blow to the incumbent Lee Myung-bak administration, now
being pressed by Roh's supporters and opposition politicians to apologize. The
government stationed riot police in central Seoul for days after his suicide to
prevent protests.
Lim was appointed the country's top prosecutor by Roh in 2007 and retained by
President Lee.
"I apologize for causing public grief as the chief prosecutor in control of the
recent probe," Lim said. "I did my best to conduct a fair probe free of political
controversy ... but I fell short."
"I feel it is no longer appropriate for me to command the prosecution when I am
overcome by agony and confusion," he said.
Once a champion of honest politics, Roh became mired in a bribery scandal
involving US$6 million that he and his family allegedly received from a wealthy
businessman just 15 months after he returned to his hometown Bongha to take up
the life of a farmer. Roh, who became the third former president to appear before
prosecutors, denied personal ties to the scandal.
The court on Tuesday rejected the prosecution's request to arrest Chun Shin-il, a
businessman implicated in the same bribery scandal, further burdening Prosecutor
General Lim. Chun is known to be a close confidant to President Lee.
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