Blue House, on petitions for 'President support and impeachment,' says "Humbly accepting diverse public opinions"

[Asia Economy Reporter Son Sun-hee] On the 24th, the Blue House stated regarding the public petitions either supporting President Moon Jae-in or calling for his impeachment that these represent "the diverse opinions of the people on government policies" and that "no opinion will be taken lightly, and we will humbly accept them."

Kang Jung-soo, head of the Blue House Digital Communication Center, made these remarks in response to public petitions posted on the Blue House website and Facebook that afternoon. This was a common response to four petitions related to the COVID-19 situation: ▲support for the president (1.5 million signatures), ▲calls for the president's impeachment (1.47 million signatures), ▲gratitude toward the president, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), and government ministries (490,000 signatures), and ▲opposition to the president's impeachment (350,000 signatures).

Regarding the petitions both supporting and opposing President Moon's impeachment, Kang said, "If two-thirds or more of the National Assembly members vote in favor of impeachment, the Constitutional Court decides on the validity of the impeachment," adding, "The decision to initiate impeachment proceedings is the prerogative of the National Assembly, so it is difficult to provide an answer, and we ask for the public's understanding." He cited Article 65 of the Constitution, which states, "When a president or other public official violates the Constitution or laws in the execution of their duties, the National Assembly may pass a resolution to impeach."

Regarding petitions supporting President Moon, the KDCA, and government ministries in their COVID-19 response, Kang said, "We are truly grateful that despite the anxiety and inconvenience, the public trusted and supported the government," and added, "The KDCA and government ministries were able to focus solely on disease control because they trusted and were encouraged by the public."

Kang also stated about the COVID-19 situation, "The world highly appreciates the mature civic consciousness of our people and the transparent, open, and democratic disease control policies, as well as the public-private cooperation involving the KDCA, government, and local governments," and added, "Our country is recognized as a leading nation establishing new international standards for disease control amid this global crisis."

He continued, "I sincerely thank the true heroes, the people, who are overcoming this difficult situation together through dedication, consideration, trust, and cooperation," and pledged, "The government will do its best until the virus is fully controlled and managed." He also requested, "We cannot be complacent yet. Although it is inconvenient, we ask the public to continue practicing social distancing."

Kang concluded his response by relaying President Moon's statement on the 20th, "We must protect the lives of the people and revive the economy before moving forward," saying, "As a government born from the power of the people, we will not forget the people's mandate to build a proper nation until the very end," and added, "Reflecting on the people's will to overcome this national crisis, we will continue to overcome it together with the public."

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