PPP: "Re-voting on the Constitutional Amendment Bill Is Unconstitutional... Violates the Principle of Il-Sa-Bu-Jae-Eui"

Song Unseok: "Quorum Was Met, Bill Already Rejected"


People Power Party to Launch Filibuster if Bill Is Resubmitted

Song Un-seok, floor leader of the People Power Party, argued on May 8 that the attempt to resubmit the constitutional amendment bill at the National Assembly plenary session scheduled for the same day is "an unconstitutional act to put to a vote an item that has already been clearly rejected."

At the floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on this day, Floor Leader Song stated, "Yesterday, the Speaker of the National Assembly declared the vote invalid on the grounds that two-thirds of the members were not present and expressed his intention to convene a plenary session without consensus on the agenda in order to put the constitutional amendment bill to another vote." He continued, "Resubmitting a bill that has already been defeated in the same session goes against the principle of 'Il-sa-bu-ja-ui' (no reconsideration of the same matter in the same session)."

Song Un-seok, floor leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 8th. Photo by Kim Hyunmin

He said, "The Constitution of the Republic of Korea clearly distinguishes between the quorum, which refers to attendance by more than half of all members, and the required number of votes, which is a majority of votes cast for a bill to pass." He added, "For ordinary bills, a majority is sufficient for passage, but for constitutional amendments, Article 130, Paragraph 1 of the Constitution requires the approval of at least two-thirds of all members."

He further stated, "Yesterday, more than half of all members were present, so the quorum was satisfied, but the bill was defeated because it did not obtain the approval of two-thirds of all members in the voting." He added, "To convene another plenary session today and put the constitutional amendment bill to another vote is an unconstitutional act."

The People Power Party announced plans to launch a filibuster (unlimited debate) if the constitutional amendment bill is tabled at the plenary session on this day. Chief spokesperson Choi Sujin told reporters immediately after the floor strategy meeting, "It is only natural that the bill should not even be brought up, given the numerous constitutional issues, but if it is, we plan to filibuster."

She continued, "Our review found that there is no law prohibiting a filibuster on a constitutional amendment bill. We are also considering filibusters not only for the constitutional amendment bill but for other bills as well." She added, "However, since there is still room for negotiation with the Democratic Party, we are considering multiple scenarios."

Regarding the reason for not boycotting the plenary session as was done the previous day, she explained, "Some claim that failing to attend means the quorum is not met, which is nonsense. If we repeat the same action, the same situation will occur again," adding, "If this continues, (the People Power Party) will respond forcefully."

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