Song Young-gil: "Party leader shaken by one word from Han Dong-hoon... Isn't this an outrage?"

"No Basic Party Principles... Undermining the Authority of the National Assembly"

Song Young-gil, former leader of the Democratic Party of Korea / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] Song Young-gil, former leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, criticized Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, for putting the brakes on the compromise bill regarding 'Geomsu Wanbak (complete removal of prosecution's investigative authority)' by saying "further discussion is needed," calling it "absurd."

On the 25th, Song appeared on CBS Radio's 'Hanpanseungbu' and harshly criticized, saying, "This shows a lack of basic principles as a political party."

In particular, he pointed out that the agreement fell apart after Han Dong-hoon, the nominee for Minister of Justice, expressed opposition to the Geomsu Wanbak compromise bill, saying, "Isn't this somewhat embarrassing?" Earlier, on the 23rd, Han released a statement expressing concerns that "without thorough analysis and social consensus, the rushed additional legislation would seriously worsen the problems."

Regarding this, Song said, "Looking at the process, Han reportedly called Lee Jun-seok and made him reverse his position," adding, "Isn't it outrageous that the party leader of the ruling party-to-be wavers at the word of the Minister of Justice nominee just before the confirmation hearing, overturning an agreement mediated by the floor leaders of both parties and the Speaker of the National Assembly?"

Han Dong-hoon, Minister of Justice Nominee / Photo by Yonhap News

He continued, "The agreement reached under the mediation of the Speaker of the National Assembly and the floor leaders of both parties?especially Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, who said the Speaker wrote it as he dictated?reversing that is unacceptable," emphasizing, "This completely undermines the authority of the National Assembly."

Earlier, on the 22nd, the Democratic Party and the People Power Party had reached a dramatic agreement by accepting Speaker Park Byeong-seok's 'Geomsu Wanbak compromise bill.' However, two days after the agreement, on the 24th, Lee put the brakes by saying, "I will reconsider this negotiation."

On that day, Lee wrote on his Facebook, "As party leader, I have always respected the discussions of the floor leadership," but added, "Although the so-called Geomsu Wanbak discussion passed at our party's caucus meeting, given the serious contradictions, further legislative promotion is unreasonable."

He went on, "Before pushing this bill any further, we need to hold public hearings with legal experts and field investigators," and added, "I believe it is also possible to raise public awareness on this issue through Han Dong-hoon's confirmation hearing. I propose discussing this policy issue immediately through the confirmation hearing of the nominee."

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