Ju Ho-young "Difficult to Receive 7 Standing Committees Without Changes to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee"

Revealed in Interview with YTN Radio
Kim Tae-nyeon "No Room for Reconsideration in Legislation and Judiciary Committee"... Confirms Difference in Position

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyemin] Joo Ho-young, floor leader of the United Future Party, stated on the 2nd regarding the redistribution of standing committee chairmanships with the Democratic Party of Korea, "It is difficult to receive other standing committee chairmanships without changing the Chair of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee."

On the same day, through YTN Radio, Floor Leader Joo said, "I expect to meet with Kim Tae-nyeon, floor leader of the Democratic Party, to discuss this issue." He emphasized, "The issue of standing committees originally started with how to handle the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. The Democratic Party allocated seven standing committees to us and implied that we could take them anytime, but it is not easy to accept them without any change to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee."

Earlier, Floor Leader Kim Tae-nyeon firmly stated, "There is no room for reconsideration regarding the Legislation and Judiciary Committee," making it clear that it is not subject to redistribution negotiations. Since the difference in positions between the ruling and opposition floor leaders has been reconfirmed, even if the redistribution discussions officially begin, it is highly likely to fall into a deadlock again.

Floor Leader Joo shared a consensus on 'cooperation' with Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yeon but also expressed concerns. He said, "Since cooperation has been frequently emphasized and a parliamentary attitude has been shown in various places, there is some expectation," but added, "Because the Democratic Party tends to be influenced heavily by so-called 'Moonbba' (pro-Moon Jae-in faction), I am watching with interest how much conviction they can maintain within this internal power structure of the Democratic Party."

Regarding the non-face-to-face parliamentary meeting system actively promoted by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Floor Leader Joo criticized, "According to the Constitution, 'attendance' means being present in the meeting room, but ignoring the constitutional concept of attendance and allowing voting via video conference in subordinate laws only paves the way for the ruling party to push through by numbers," and said, "I was very upset that (the Speaker) threw this out without any sense of problem."

He continued, "I heard that the Democratic Party only holds party meetings via video conference and does not consider holding plenary or standing committee meetings this way due to such concerns," and criticized, "The Speaker is overdoing it and ignoring constitutional and neutrality concepts."

Regarding the United Future Party's new party name, 'People Power Party,' he evaluated, "From the perspectives of de-ideologization, centrism, and pragmatism, it seems appropriate," and added, "Since the core concept of our Constitution is the people, and it repeatedly states that the people are the owners, using the word 'People' in the party name aligns with the spirit of the Constitution."

On the omission of the phrase 'ban on four-term consecutive re-election for members of the National Assembly' in the new party platform, he explained, "There is no constitutional provision limiting the term of National Assembly members, and the National Assembly Research Service has an opinion that including a four-term limit in subordinate laws could be unconstitutional," and added, "There was also the issue of whether the four-term limit should apply to all elected positions like local councilors or heads of agricultural cooperatives." Floor Leader Joo further explained, "The term limit is intended to facilitate youth entry, but since even if youth enter, they can only serve up to three terms, more discussion and review are needed, so it was deferred."

Regarding Kim Jong-in, the emergency committee chairman who will mark his 100th day in office on the 3rd, he said, "The party has stabilized a lot, and there seems to be a good evaluation regarding the focus on innovation and centrist pragmatism," and expressed confidence, "Now that preparations for innovation are complete, future changes are much more anticipated, and the public will be able to feel them firsthand."

Regarding the ongoing rumors in political circles about Chairman Kim's presidential bid, Floor Leader Joo drew a line, saying, "He has repeatedly stated that his role is party innovation and reconstruction and that he knows well when to step down," and added, "It would be better not to speculate otherwise."