"Quarantine Completed"... National Assembly to Hold Plenary Session on 26th and Pass 'Corona 3 Laws'

The Prime Minister's Questions Postponed to Next Month

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Wondara] The National Assembly, which had been closed due to COVID-19 prevention measures, will resume normal operations on the 26th. The ruling and opposition parties agreed to hold a plenary session at 2 p.m. on the 26th to prioritize urgent bills such as the 'COVID-19 Three Acts.' The government questioning session, which requires the attendance of government officials, has been postponed to next month.

Yoon Hoo-duk, Senior Deputy Floor Leader of the Democratic Party of Korea; Kim Han-pyo, Senior Deputy Floor Leader of the United Future Party; and Jang Jeong-sook, Senior Deputy Floor Leader of the United Future Party's parliamentary group, held a meeting of negotiation groups on the 25th and agreed to normalize the February National Assembly starting from the 26th.

According to the agreement, the plenary session will be held at 2 p.m. on the 26th. During the session, the agenda will include the formation of the 'National Assembly COVID-19 Countermeasures Special Committee' and the passage of related laws such as the 'COVID-19 Three Acts.' Additionally, the plenary will handle the consent for the appointment of Supreme Court justices, the election of the chairs of the Education Committee and the Intelligence Committee, and the selection of members of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission. The government questioning session, which was supposed to take place starting on the 24th, will now be held on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th of next month, with the plenary session on the 5th proceeding as scheduled.

The National Assembly Secretariat issued a press release on the day stating, "Following the visit of a confirmed COVID-19 patient to the National Assembly on the 19th, disinfection work that began at 6 p.m. on the 24th was completed at the Members' Office Building at 12:10 a.m. on the 25th and at the Main Building at 5:10 a.m." It added, "Disinfection of the library and the parliamentary hall is expected to be completed by 1 p.m. Accordingly, the National Assembly buildings, including the Main Building and Members' Office Building, will resume normal functions from 9 a.m. on the 26th as originally planned."

With the normalization of the National Assembly, activities of each standing committee are also expected to resume after agreement between the ruling and opposition party floor leaders.

Earlier, when it was reported that a confirmed COVID-19 patient attended a forum held at the National Assembly on the 19th, the National Assembly Secretariat immediately initiated emergency disinfection and restricted access to the National Assembly. Participants in this forum, including Shim Jae-cheol, floor leader of the United Future Party; Kwak Sang-do, member of the United Future Party; and Jeon Hee-kyung, member of the United Future Party, underwent COVID-19 testing and received negative results.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.