Budget Committee Begins Review of Non-Economic Ministries' Budgets... Ruling and Opposition Parties Clash Over Special Activity Expenses and Assemblies

Kang Seung-gyu on Opposition's Special Activity Fund Cuts: "Retaliation Against Lee Jae-myung Investigation"
Moon Geum-ju Demands Apology from Police Chief for Rally Control

From the 13th, the ruling and opposition parties clashed sharply over the cuts to special activity expenses (teukhwalbi) and specific task expenses (teukgyeongbi) of investigative agencies during the budget review of non-economic ministries, as well as disputes related to the police's control of opposition party's outdoor rallies.

The National Assembly's Budget and Accounts Committee held a plenary meeting in the morning and conducted a departmental review of non-economic ministries. The ministries under review included the Board of Audit and Inspection, the Presidential Secretariat, the National Security Office, the Presidential Security Service, the Ministry of Justice, the National Police Agency, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, and the National Election Commission.

The opposition party has demanded cuts to the contingency funds, special activity expenses, and specific task expenses of investigative agencies such as the Presidential Office and the prosecution. Earlier, the Judiciary Committee led by the opposition party fully cut 8.09 billion KRW of prosecution special activity expenses and 50.691 billion KRW of specific task expenses from the Ministry of Justice's budget proposal. They also cut 419 million KRW from the Personnel Information Management Unit's security budget under the Ministry of Justice, and 1.519 billion KRW of special activity expenses and 4.519 billion KRW of specific task expenses from the Board of Audit and Inspection. The rationale was that these funds were used as petty cash without receipts or disclosure of usage details.

On the other hand, Kang Seung-gyu, a member of the People Power Party, pointed out during his first questioning at the Budget Committee that the special task expenses used by four prosecution offices, including the Seongnam branch that investigated Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, were scrutinized, arguing that "the full cuts to the prosecution's special activity and specific task expenses can be seen as related to the investigation of Leader Lee." Park Seong-jae, Minister of Justice, responded, "I don't think it is easy to say that definitively, but considering the continuous demands for the impeachment of prosecutors, such suspicions are inevitable."

Moon Geum-ju, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, strongly criticized the police for suppressing rallies held by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and the opposition party in Seoul on the 9th. She had previously warned that if Police Commissioner General Jo Ji-ho did not apologize for the police's harsh crackdown on the rallies held by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and the opposition party in downtown Seoul on the 9th, the budget would be cut.

Moon demanded an apology, saying, "Public authority is a special power and should not be exercised arbitrarily, and the National Police Agency should not be inconsistent in its statements." When Commissioner General Jo responded that the rallies had turned into illegal assemblies and requested their termination, Moon repeatedly asked if he was willing to apologize, saying, "Is it acceptable to beat people indiscriminately if the assembly is illegal? Is it acceptable if there are injured people?"

In response, Seo Ji-young, a member of the People Power Party, reminded that the College Scholastic Ability Test and university entrance essay exams are taking place this week, and criticized, "There are talks about filling the city center with rallies and protests this weekend, causing congestion for many examinees who are focusing on their future at this critical moment, all to protect Leader Lee."

Budget review for non-economic ministries is underway at the 11th plenary meeting of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts held at the National Assembly on the 13th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

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