Han Byung-do, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, said Monday that he would complete the National Assembly's committee restructuring for the second half of its term, declaring, "We will complete the committee restructuring today in accordance with National Assembly Act procedures."
Speaking at a floor strategy meeting, Han said, "This afternoon, we will hold a plenary session for the second-half committee restructuring and the confirmation of the prime minister candidate." He added, "We can no longer wait for the People Power Party, which insists on the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, refuses negotiations, fails to submit its list, and even ignores the National Assembly Act."
He continued, "If they ultimately do not submit their list, the committee restructuring must be concluded through the National Assembly Speaker's exercise of authority under the National Assembly Act." He criticized the party, saying, "Despite the clear existence of procedures under the National Assembly Act, citing customary law to block the committee restructuring is nothing more than tantrum-throwing and stubbornness that shows the bottom of old-fashioned politics."
Han stressed, "If custom has been abused and turned into a bad practice, it must now be changed to create a working National Assembly." He emphasized, "The Democratic Party will never tolerate the People Power Party's cherry-picking of standing committees and its shaking of the National Assembly Speaker." He added, "This committee restructuring is the first step of the second-half National Assembly to support the Lee Jae-myung administration and restore the livelihoods of the people," and said, "We will approach the election of standing committee chairs with a focus on immediately activating all standing committees."
Regarding the government's three mega-projects announced the previous day, Han pledged legislative and fiscal support from the National Assembly. "The three mega-projects, on which the future of the Republic of Korea hinges, have set sail," he said. "For projects with clear potential, we will accelerate them even by enacting special laws, and for projects that need seed funding, we will push them forward without obstruction even by allocating additional budget." He added, "We will make sure that over the two years of the second-half National Assembly, we are evaluated as having laid the cornerstone of a miracle in the Republic of Korea's industrial and economic history."
He also reiterated the need to pursue a special counsel investigation into the National Election Commission, which the Democratic Party has adopted as its party line. "The ballot paper shortage was a grave incident that directly infringed on voters' right to political participation," Han said. "A special counsel investigation is needed to clarify the suspicions of dereliction of duty, false reporting, and evasion of responsibility revealed in the parliamentary inquiry." He urged, "The People Power Party should also join efforts to uncover the truth and punish those responsible, rather than shouting political slogans like a re-election."
