[Column] Ruling and Opposition Parties Only Demand Pain Sharing from Companies

Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, is delivering opening remarks at the current issues inspection meeting held at the National Assembly on the 24th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

Park Hong-geun, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending the policy coordination meeting held at the National Assembly on the 23rd and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, pointed out at the Supreme Council meeting on the 23rd that "commercial banks have been making excessive profits from the gap between deposit and loan interest rates." Regarding the inflation burden caused by high oil prices, he also said, "Refineries should not be the only ones to fatten their pockets." He added, "We will also discuss with the government ways to provide incentives to companies that share the burden of pain."

Considering the exchange rate surpassing 1,300 won for the first time in 13 years and the domestic stock market plummeting, the ruling party floor leader’s remarks can be interpreted as a call for everyone to make some concessions.

However, given the recent deadlock in the National Assembly, one might question whether the ruling and opposition parties are qualified to demand shared sacrifices. Even after the first half of the National Assembly ended, the ruling and opposition parties have been engaged in disputes over the formation of the Assembly for about a month.

Both parties are aware of the serious economic situation. The People Power Party has formed a Special Committee for Price and Livelihood Stabilization, and the Democratic Party of Korea recently launched a Special Committee for Economic Crisis Response. However, the issues discussed in these special committees have become indefinite promises. Measures linked to legal amendments, such as the reduction of oil tax, cannot be realized if the National Assembly fails to organize itself.

When it comes to demanding corporate sharing of pain, both parties differ only in degree, not in stance. The Democratic Party previously announced plans to introduce a kind of ‘windfall tax’ on refineries. Kim Seong-hwan, chairman of the Democratic Party’s Policy Committee, recently stated, "In the spirit of sharing pain, we will minimize the excess profits of refineries or recover them through fund contributions."

It is difficult to accept the argument that only companies should share the pain when the National Assembly cannot even organize itself. In this urgent situation, various bills to help revitalize companies are still dormant in the Assembly. How can one respond to the business community’s grumble, "If you demand shared pain just because profits are high, will the political circles take responsibility when performance worsens?"

The current government has declared that it will shift the economic policy from government-led to private sector-led. To ease the sandbags on companies, the political circles must also take care of their responsibilities.

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