Tensions escalate as Democratic Party of Korea pushes to approve PM nominee, extra budget
Rep. Kim Byung-kee, acting leader and floor leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (left, talks with Prime Minister nominee and three-term lawmaker Rep. Kim Min-seok during a parliamentary plenary session at the National Assembly on Friday. - Photo: The Korea Herald/ANN
SEOUL: Tensions between the main parties are projected to intensify this week over whether to approve the nomination for prime minister for Kim Min-seok, as well as the review of an extra budget proposal.
The main opposition People Power Party on Sunday (June 29) said it plans to hold a 'people's' confirmation hearing for Kim, where the four-term lawmaker would be questioned by members of the public from outside the National Assembly.
The party's remarks come as the People Power Party and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea have failed to close the gap in their stance over the approval of Kim, with the main opposition criticising the nominee regarding various scandals.
'Tomorrow, at 11am, the People Power Party plans to hold a people's confirmation hearing where candidate Kim's issues will be dealt with,' Rep. Song Eon-seog, who was recently elected as the People Power Party's floor leader, said in a Facebook post on Sunday (June 29).
'The two-day parliamentary confirmation hearing is over, but the people's judgment starts now. We plan to continue the verification on candidate Kim by inviting committee members consisting of young Koreans (in their 20s and 30s), North Korean defectors and experts in various areas,' he added.
The Assembly's 13-member special committee on personnel hearing, consisting of lawmakers from both the ruling and main opposition parties, has yet to adopt a confirmation hearing report for Kim, due to objections from the People Power Party.
The committee held two days of hearings for Kim on Tuesday and Wednesday, but the main opposition denounced the unprecedented absence of witnesses tied to the prime minister nominee's scandals surrounding his assets and family.
According to People Power Party Rep. Joo Jin-woo, a member of the personnel hearing committee, Kim's assets stood at some 500 million won (US$370,000) in 2020, yet the nominee spent 1.3 billion won around that time, without clear receipts pointing to additional earnings and spending. Kim has also been accused of failing to submit documents demonstrating the source of money for his son's tuition at a US university.
The four-term liberal lawmaker, who was nominated for prime minister by President Lee Jae Myung on June 4, was convicted by the country's top court in 2005 of violating the Political Funds Act by receiving 200 million won in illegal funds from conglomerate SK Group in 2002.
Additionally, the Supreme Court in 2010 found him guilty in a separate political slush fund case, in which he received illegal funds worth a combined 720 million won from three of his aides in 2007.
Despite the People Power Party's disapproval of Kim, the Democratic Party, which holds a firm majority of 167 seats in the 300-seat Assembly, has requested Assembly Speaker Rep.
Woo Won-shik to convene a plenary meeting on Monday in an apparent bid to vote in favor of the prime minister nominee.
'The office of the Assembly speaker has yet to respond, despite our party's request to convene a plenary meeting tomorrow for the appointment of the prime minister nominee,' Democratic Party spokesperson Kim Hyun-jung told reporters around noon on Sunday.
'Instead of pressuring the Assembly speaker's office, our stance is that we can pass (the motion to appoint Kim) on July 4 when we plan to pass the extra budget proposal — the plenary session (that we are pushing for tomorrow) has yet to be decided.'
The issue of approving the Lee administration's 20.2 trillion won extra budget proposal is expected to fuel partisan tension as well.
The extra budget proposal is the second of its kind this year and the first since Lee took office.
The People Power Party took issue with a portion of the budget that includes distribution of vouchers ranging from 150,000 to 520,000 won per person, depending on income level.
On Friday, the Assembly elected four chairs for parliamentary committees in the plenary session, as the People Power Party walked out of the session in a show of protest. - The Korea Herald/ANN
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