"Busy with probation"... Public Administration Committee to Receive 'Itaewon Disaster' Progress Report Today

Minister of the Interior and Safety, Police Chief, and Fire Agency Acting Chief Summoned to National Assembly
Ruling and Opposition Whips Agree Not to Question on Current Issues

Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min is paying respects at the joint memorial altar for the victims of the Itaewon accident set up at Seoul Plaza on the 31st. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] On the afternoon of the 1st, the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee held a plenary meeting to receive reports from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the National Police Agency, and the National Fire Agency on the causes identified so far and the progress of recovery related to the 'Itaewon Disaster.' Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min, National Police Agency Commissioner Yoon Hee-geun, and Acting Commissioner of the National Fire Agency Nam Hwa-young attended. However, there are complaints questioning whether it is necessary to summon them to the National Assembly urgently when the recovery and victim support are time-sensitive.

Lee Chae-ik, chairman of the Public Administration and Security Committee, told Asia Economy on the day, "We decided to receive only the report without any questions during the plenary meeting." The meeting is expected to last about an hour.

The National Police Agency plans to report to the committee on the personnel deployed on the day of the accident and traffic control measures. The National Fire Agency is expected to report on the status of casualties and rescue operations at the time and announce plans to supplement the manual for emergency response in mass casualty situations.

The committee plans to hold another plenary meeting after the national mourning period and once the situation has somewhat stabilized to review whether the safety accident prevention measures were appropriate, including the fire authorities' response and support for the victims' families.

Considering that the recovery efforts are ongoing, the ruling and opposition parties arranged for only some government officials to attend the committee's briefing on current issues that day.

However, some pointed out that holding a plenary meeting of the committee just to receive a simple report is inefficient. One committee member said in a phone interview, "We cannot immediately come up with alternatives based on today's report, and daily damage reports are all already released," adding, "Preparing to receive a report on information we already know and asking field personnel to come all the way to the National Assembly is nothing but a show for appearances."

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