Midway Through the National Audit... Zero Tension Due to Blunt Blades of Both Parties, No 'One Shot'

Reduced Old Practices Significantly but Policy Audit Role Also Blunted
No Progress in Issues from Opposition... Joo Ho-young "Limits Due to Blocked Witness Adoption"
Democratic Party Also Missing Government Oversight, Agencies Say "Just Hold On"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyemin] The National Assembly’s audit, which began on the 7th and has now reached its midpoint, is drifting into a lackluster atmosphere without attracting public attention. The tension has dissipated because both ruling and opposition parties have dulled their blades. There is no “big hit” this time, such as private kindergarten accounting fraud or hiring corruption in the Seoul Transportation Corporation union. Expectations were high for the fourth year of the Moon Jae-in administration and the first audit of the 21st National Assembly, but contrary to expectations, the general assessment is that it is a “flat audit.”

Before the audit began, lawmakers from both sides were determined to break away from the old habits seen in past audits and show a changed attitude. A representative example was refraining from the practice of summoning CEOs of large corporations one after another just to shout for about five minutes, regardless of the gravity of the issue. It was also a changed scene that witness and reference requests aimed at drawing attention?such as Pengsoo, YouTube star Captain Lee Geun, and Baek Jong-won, CEO of The Born Korea?were instead criticized. There are no lawmakers dressing unusually or bringing attention-grabbing items just to “stand out.” This shows their determination to focus on auditing the executive branch.

However, contrary to early expectations, its role as a policy audit has also dulled, showing a practically lackluster performance.

In particular, the People Power Party expressed enthusiasm to properly question the government’s mistakes and show itself as an alternative party, but their inquiries remained at the level of repeating previously raised issues. The so-called audit is called the “opposition party’s stage,” but it has failed to show any significant presence. As attention wanes, they appear to be taking excessive offensives, such as wasting the audit on allegations of preferential leave for the son of Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae.

The People Power Party argues that limits have already been revealed as the government delays submitting materials and the ruling party blocks the adoption of key witnesses. On the 14th, People Power Party floor leader Joo Ho-young said on CBS Radio, “Necessary material submissions and important witness adoptions for the audit are hardly happening,” adding, “The Democratic Party, which holds the majority of seats, is outright refusing to adopt anything unfavorable to the administration.” He criticized, “This is the worst audit ever. It should be monitoring and checking the executive branch, but it has become an audit that defends the administration.”

The ruling Democratic Party’s bias toward defending the government is also cited as a reason for the “lackluster” audit. Rather than checking for flaws in government policies, it is criticized for creating opportunities for government explanations and dragging the “government/ruling party vs. opposition” framework into the audit. A staff member from the opposition said, “What the government finds more painful is criticism from the ruling party,” adding, “The ruling party is the one that can check the government more, and at least during the audit, the ruling party itself should be reviewing policies again, but that function has completely disappeared.”

As a result, the government being audited is also making serious auditing difficult by maintaining an attitude of “just getting through this period.” A staffer who has been involved in audits for 15 years lamented, “Compared to the past, the strongest difference I feel is that the government and agencies are becoming less afraid of the National Assembly,” adding, “When being audited, the audited institutions should be nervous, but it has become the opposite.”

He pointed out, “Lawmakers’ offices have to plead with the government just to get some materials prepared,” adding, “Since there is no way to demand disciplinary action for insincere material submissions or answers, the audit itself has dulled. Frankly, from the government’s perspective, they think they just need to hold out for a day or two.”

Another staff member said, “There are no longer players who can catch whether there are problems in policies or damages,” adding, “If the ability to catch issues closely related to daily life, like the past private kindergarten fraud, gradually declines, ultimately the people will suffer the damage.”

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