CANDIDATES CLASH OVER LAND SCANDAL

[Anchor Lead]

DP presidential nominee Lee Jae-myung and his PPP rival Yoon Suk-yeol clashed on Sunday over an independent counsel probe into the Daejang-dong land development project. The rift was caused by the arrest of former lawmaker Kwak Sang-do and the audio file of Hwacheondaeyu major shareholder Kim Man-bae.

[Pkg]

Lee Jae-myung has announced his stance on the arrest of former lawmaker Kwak Sang-do. He expressed outrage over why only Kwak and no one else had been arrested so belatedly. He is calling on the PPP to agree to an independent counsel probe to find the truth even after the presidential race. Lee intensified his attacks after Open Sympathy TV disclosed the audio file of a conversation between Hwacheondaeyu major shareholder Kim Man-bae and accountant Jeong Young-hak mentioning Yoon Suk-yeol.

[Soundbite] Lee Jae-myung(DP Pres. Candidate(Feb. 6)) : "They personally said that Kim Man-bae and Yoon Suk-yeol are close enough to exchange insults. You can hear in the audio file, 'Yoon's fate lies with me'."

The DP's senior election campaign and justice committee officials, in a statement, demanded Yoon explain his relationship with Kim Man-bae. The PPP candidate, who in the first televised debate focused his attacks on Lee's responsibility for the Daejang-dong scandal, brushed off the accusation as improper.

[Soundbite] Yoon Suk-yeol(PPP Pres. Candidate(Feb. 6)) : "Didn't we call for a dual special counsel probe into the Daejang-dong scandal and everything else, including Busan Savings Bank and the accusation that I requested an investigation?"

The PPP believes the ruling party is trying to turn attention away from the allegation that Lee Jae-myung's wife abused power. Yoon issued a statement in response to the audio file, denying any ties to Kim Man-bae. He also said the DP is spreading false rumors by cherry picking Kim's words.