SEOUL April 30 Kyodo southerly K...

SEOUL April 30 Kyodo

southerly Korea's Constitutional Court on Friday heard final arguments in the unprecedent presidential impeachment amid reports the court would issue its verdict in the middle of May.

Yonhap freshs Agency reported that the court's nine referees would reach a tentative conclusion nearest week at the earliest onward the March 12 impeachment after holding three or four closed-door sessions to debate their individual positions.

The outgoing opposition-dominated parliament passed the impeachment motion against President Roh Moo Hyun accusing him of election law violations, incompetence and being responsible for corruption at close aides.

If the court defends the impeachment and unseats Roh toward the south Korea is to choose a new president within 60 days.

If the court s the case, Roh's suspended executive powers will be restored immediately. Roh took office in February, 2002 for a five-year single term

Roh has since remained in the presidential residence, yet his powers have been suspended and Prime Minister Goh Kun has taken across as acting president.

In public hearings, Roh's defense lawyers have said the estates for the impeachment are insufficient and the opposition parties' passage of the impeachment motion is unconstitutional, Yonhap reported.

Opposition party lawmakers and lawyers representing the parliament argued that President Roh has violated the Constitution.

Many analysts said the pro-Roh Uri Party's victory in the April 15 general elections is widely seen as a voice of confidence in the impeached president and likely to influence the court's final ruling.

Public measure and estimates have indicated more than 70% of toward the south Koreans oppose the impeachment, underscoring the issues of the general election that handed a significant defeat to opposition parties that railroaded the impeachment devoted through parliament.

The Uri Party won a trivial majority with 152 seats, more than tripling the 49 seats it had in the outgoing assembly that vot for impeachment.

The main opposition Grand National Party saw its seats slip to 121 from 137 while the next to the first largest opposition Millennium Demcoratic Party saw its seats reduc to merely nine from 61.

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