Main opposition Democratic United Party floor leader Park Jie-won voluntarily appeared before the prosecution on Tuesday afternoon in a surprise twist in the investigation of his alleged bribery, averting an anticipated parliamentary clash over his arrest.

Park’s appearance at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office came after the prosecution’s three consecutive summons and eventually a motion to detain him for questioning. The motion was just passed to the National Assembly by the Justice Ministry on Tuesday for approval. Park had defied all summons claiming the probe was politically motivated.

“Although the party has a stern position against me appearing before the prosecution, not to mention how I feel unjustly accused, I do not want to burden the party and my colleagues of both ruling and opposition parties,” DUP floor speaker Woo Won-shik quoted Park as saying as he left for the prosecution.

“I deemed that I could not risk losing an Assembly session in August due to my problem when we need to open it to deal with pending matters related to the public’s livelihood,” Park said, adding that he plans to clarify his position and innocence.

Park is suspected of receiving around 80 million won ($70,000) in illegal political funds from Solomon Savings Bank and Bohae Savings Bank between 2007 and 2010 in return for influence-peddling to prevent their closure.

The rival parties had been bracing for a stormy Assembly session, as the DUP vowed to thwart Park’s arrest motion, possibly with a filibuster.

The ruling Saenuri Party was set on approving the motion as part of its renewed pledge to carry out political reform, after it faced a backlash over its rejection in July of detention of its member Rep. Chung Doo-un, also involved in the bribery case.

Under the National Assembly Act, the detainment of incumbent lawmakers during a working session must receive approval from a majority of lawmakers.

The Saenuri Party, meanwhile, remained cynical about Park’s change of heart.

“The appearance by Park before the prosecution is something that should have happened all along. He had avoided the people and the law by refusing the prosecution’s summons three times. Park should now faithfully comply with the jurisdiction’s legal process,” Saenuri Party spokesman Kim Young-woo said.

Both the Saenuri Party and the DUP had been uneasy over the potential political backlash their positions on Park’s arrest motion would bring.

For the Saenuri, a majority vote to approve Park’s arrest without the participation of the opposition lawmakers would come with a burden.

For the DUP, refusing Park’s arrest could result in public condemnation of the lawmakers’ failure to live up to their reform pledges.

Some first-term DUP lawmakers protested the leadership’s recommendation to block the motion during the party’s emergency meeting late Monday, party sources said.

“It is the people’s wishes that whoever is at fault, whether it is Park or not, should be reprimanded,” Rep. Hwang Ju-hong was quoted as saying.

The prosecution, in the meantime, is expected to decide whether to indict Park after questioning him.

The DUP is expected to request an immediate opening of another extraordinary Assembly session in early August.

By Lee Joo-hee (jhl@heraldcorp.com)