South Korea's ruling party suspends leader over sexual bribery scandal

ANKARA (AA) - The South Korean ruling party suspended its chairman’s membership over allegations of sexual bribery, local media reported on Friday.

The People Power Party's ethics committee, after an eight-hour meeting, suspended party Chairman Lee Jun-seok for six months, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Lee earlier refused to step down and accused the pro-President Yoon Suk-yeol lobby inside the party of hatching a conspiracy against him.

"I have no intention to do so," Lee said on KBS radio when asked if he would step down.

He was accused of receiving sexual services paid for by a businessman seeking his influence in 2013 and attempting to cover up the wrongdoing earlier this year after the allegations surfaced, according to the report.

Lee said he will use his power to reverse the committee decision and file a case in court.

However, the ruling party’s floor leader Kweon Seong-dong said Lee could not do it because he is already suspended.

Lee was the first person in his 30s to take the helm of a major political party in South Korea.

He claimed the ethics committee meeting was political engineering against him by the pro-president members.

However, Yoon expressed regret, saying: "As a member of the People Power Party, I feel it is a shame he feels shame as one of the PPP members.”

"As I've always said, I don't think it's appropriate for the president to comment on party affairs. ... I look forward to our party members coming together to quickly overcome the difficult situation," Yoon told reporters after the party's decision to suspend Lee.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid