Joo Ho-young: "Democratic Party Boycotting Policy Speech? Listening Is the Spirit of the Law"

“State of the Nation Address, a Moment to Report the 600 Trillion Budget to the People”
Regarding the Presidential Office's Request for Position: “A Strategy to Give the Impression of Yoon's Involvement”
“Special Prosecutor Is Unreasonable” Reiterating the Unacceptability of Acceptance

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Hyun-ji] Regarding the Democratic Party of Korea's indication of a boycott of President Yoon Seok-yeol's policy speech scheduled for the 25th in protest against the prosecution's investigation, Joo Ho-young, floor leader of the People Power Party, emphasized on the 24th, "The policy speech must be listened to for a thorough budget review, and that is the spirit of the law."

On the same day, Floor Leader Joo said on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' program, "The policy speech was already agreed upon in the parliamentary schedule to be held on the 25th, and it was decided at the National Assembly plenary session, so it cannot be changed."

He added, "I think the Democratic Party might boycott or hold protest picketing if their demands are not met," but explained that "Article 84 of the National Assembly Act states that the policy speech must be heard, and it is not only a legal provision but also an occasion for the government to report and explain to the public the philosophy and principles behind the nearly 600 trillion won budget for next year," emphasizing that attending the policy speech is the duty of the National Assembly.

Regarding the Democratic Party's demand for the Presidential Office to express its position on the special prosecutor investigation, he said, "The decision on whether to appoint a special prosecutor is not up to the Presidential Office but requires agreement between the ruling and opposition parties in the National Assembly," and criticized, "Asking the President to respond is a strategy to give the impression that the President is involved in this investigation."

He also reiterated the Democratic Party's refusal to accept the 'Daejang-dong special prosecutor.' Floor Leader Joo stated, "The introduction of a special prosecutor can be discussed if the prosecution's investigation is not conducted properly or if significant problems arise in the prosecution's investigation," but added, "At this stage, a special prosecutor is completely out of the question." He further pointed out, "When we proposed a special prosecutor more than 40 times, it was effectively rejected. Now that the prosecution has reorganized and is conducting a proper investigation, they are talking about appointing a special prosecutor."

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