Embattled Park to face questioning by prosecutors

South Korean President Park Geun-hye has retained a lawyer ahead of being questioned by prosecutors investigating a favours scandal engulfing her administration, her office said today.

While the president has twice apologized for seeking speech-writing help from her secret confidante, her Gallup Korea approval rating has been stuck at a record low five percent for a fortnight.

The party also urged prosecutors to vigorously question Ms Park over her relationship with Choi Soon-sil, Ms Park’s friend who received access to government documents.

Scores of South Koreans join a mass demonstration in central Seoul and call for the resignation of President Park Geun-hye.

It would be the first time that a sitting president has been questioned by prosecutors.

Under South Korea’s constitution, the incumbent president may not be charged with a criminal offence except insurrection or treason.

The questioning comes a day after the prosecution announced it would carry out direct questioning of the president early this week to investigate her role in the widening scandal surrounding Choi.

“I’m here so that this country will be a better place for my daughters”, said Park Min-hee, 34, a housewife who was at the rally with her two young daughters and her husband’s parents.

Prosecutors found evidence that Cheil had made questionable donations to a non-profit sports foundation controlled by Choi’s niece, Jang Si-Ho, Yonhap said.

Hyundai chairman Chung Mong-Koo was also questioned, along with the bosses of other powerful conglomerates, Yonhap said.

Opposition lawmakers have linked Choi to a religious movement and say she intervened more extensively in government affairs.

Despite rising public anger, opposition parties have yet to seriously push for Park’s resignation or impeachment over fears of negatively impacting next year’s presidential race. Media reports said more were expected to join a candlelight rally later in the evening, making the protest one of the biggest since demonstration in 2008 against US beef imports.

The inquiry of the hardware organization’s office in the upmarket Gangnam zone of the capital took after days of claims in household media that Samsung piped a large number of euros into an establishment keep running by a long-lasting companion and “shaman adviser” of President Park Geun-hye. Prosecutors are pushing to complete any investigation into Park this week because of the upcoming expiry of Choi’s legal detention period.

Ms Choi is accused of trying to extort huge sums of money from South Korean companies and is under arrest on charges of fraud and abuse of power. She has also offered two formal apologies on state TV.

The 60-year-old woman is suspected of using her close friendship with the president to pressure major conglomerates into donating tens of millions of US dollars to the two foundations.