Song Eon-seok: "Let's Discuss a Constitutional Amendment Including Power Structure Reform After Local Elections"

"Opposition Is Not to the Amendment's Content,
But to Hasty, Election-Driven Constitutional Revision"

Song Eon-seok, Floor Leader of the People Power Party, addressed the issue of constitutional amendment involving both the Speaker of the National Assembly Woo Won-shik and the ruling and opposition parties, excluding the People Power Party, on April 28. He proposed, "After the local elections, we suggest forming a Special Committee on Constitutional Amendment comprising both the ruling and opposition parties, and calmly discussing a comprehensive amendment bill, including everything from the preamble to power structure reform."

At the party's policy meeting held at the National Assembly that day, Floor Leader Song stated, "If we create a precedent for hasty, election-driven constitutional amendments as we see now, there will be a flood of such attempts and populist pledges targeting elections every time there is a vote."

Song Eonsuk, floor leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the party strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on April 28, 2026. Photo by Hyunmin Kim

Previously, Speaker Woo held a press conference the day before, and in response to the People Power Party's opposition to holding the constitutional amendment vote alongside the local elections, said, "Some claim that the group most averse to constitutional revision is 'Yoonagain,' and there are criticisms that the People Power Party leadership is tied to them. If the constitutional amendment fails because the party blocks it as a matter of party policy, then all responsibility must lie with the People Power Party."

In response, Floor Leader Song said, "As the head of the legislature, Speaker Woo should maintain dignity in his remarks," adding, "It is inappropriate to distort the situation as if People Power Party lawmakers are suppressing their personal conscience and beliefs due to party policy. I hope Speaker Woo will apologize to our party members."

Floor Leader Song continued, "As I have repeatedly said, we are not opposed to the content of constitutional amendment itself, but we oppose hasty, election-oriented amendments," emphasizing, "The Constitution is an organically structured system, from the preamble to the main text and the supplementary provisions, and any amendment must be carefully deliberated and comprehensive."

He also noted, "The preamble defines the historical spirit of the Constitution, and it requires rigorous and thorough debate, not just a simple yes or no," adding, "There are arguments that the historical significance of the Korean War and liberal democracy should be included in the preamble. Additionally, whether to integrate the Busan-Masan Democratic Uprising and the 5·18 Gwangju Democratization Movement with the 4·19 Democratic Ideals currently mentioned in the preamble, or to address them separately, must be thoroughly discussed."

Furthermore, he said, "Constitutional amendment should not be a strategy by the broader ruling coalition to isolate the opposition but should be pursued through consensus based on political balance between the ruling and opposition parties," adding, "When the broader ruling coalition isolated the main opposition party in the past, the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials became a waste of taxpayer money, and the semi-mixed-member proportional representation system turned into a playground for satellite parties. Constitutional amendment is an even more critical issue, and such mistakes must never be repeated."

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