People Power Party (PPP) lawmakers called for a vote on a dismissal motion against Unification Minister Chung Dong-young at the National Assembly plenary session on Monday, while Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) lawmakers collectively walked out. Some DPK lawmakers were seen taking commemorative photos, drawing criticism from the PPP, with one member asking, "Are they out of their minds?"
Rep. Kim Gun, the PPP's secretary on the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, said during a free-speech session at the plenary meeting, "Since taking office, Minister Chung has continued to make uncoordinated and unilateral statements across foreign policy and security matters." He added, "He has been out of step with the President, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of National Defense, and has caused friction with our ally, the United States."
"Minister Chung stated, based on an estimate from a government agency, that North Korea possesses 200 kilograms of highly enriched uranium, which is classified information," Kim said. "His recent remarks about a 'highly enriched facility in North Korea's Kusong area' are an extension of this pattern. Since then, some U.S.-Korea intelligence sharing on North Korea has been suspended, raising concerns about alliance trust and security cooperation."
Kim said, "The dismissal motion against Minister Chung submitted by the People Power Party is a minimum measure to uphold the basic principles of national security." The PPP submitted the dismissal motion as a party-line initiative after Chung publicly mentioned Kusong in North Pyongan Province as North Korea's third nuclear facility, which led to a partial suspension of U.S. intelligence sharing on the North.
When Kim began speaking, DPK lawmakers left the plenary chamber, and some were spotted gathering on one side for commemorative photos. PPP Rep. Lee Sung-kwon wrote on Facebook, "Are the Democratic Party lawmakers taking commemorative photos while an opposition lawmaker is speaking at the plenary session out of their minds?" He added, "This goes beyond disrespecting the opposition — it is a question of the dignity and qualifications of ruling party lawmakers who are responsible for state affairs."
Under the National Assembly Act, a ministerial dismissal motion must be voted on between 24 and 72 hours after being reported to the plenary session, or it is discarded. As Monday's session was the final plenary meeting of the April extraordinary session, the motion is expected to be scrapped without a vote. The PPP had earlier requested National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik to convene a plenary session on Sunday, but Woo did not accept the request, leading the motion to be reported on Monday instead.
PPP Floor Leader Song Eon-seok addressed the issue on Facebook, writing, "Speaker Woo and the Democratic Party ignored our demand to hold a plenary session on the 27th to report the dismissal motion and vote on it at today's session, and instead resorted to a 'scrapping trick' by only reporting it at today's meeting." He added, "What is a 160-seat ruling party so afraid of that it cannot even hold a vote on a dismissal motion?"
