[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The People Power Party welcomed the Democratic Party of Korea's acceptance of the proposal to include the third disaster relief fund in the main budget and emphasized the need to speed up its disbursement.
On the 26th, Bae Jun-young, spokesperson for the People Power Party, said in a statement, "Since there is a consensus on the broad direction of 'disbursement,' now is the time to accelerate the process."
He added, "Disaster relief funds should be promptly prioritized for industries severely affected and households in crisis. As the budget review is nearing its final stage, we must push forward with the review even overnight to provide some relief to the people suffering from COVID-19."
Spokesperson Bae emphasized, "The People Power Party proactively proposed the second disaster relief fund, which the government and ruling party accepted. In the face of a national crisis, budget formulation and disbursement should be solely focused on wiping the tears of the people and comforting them, regardless of partisan interests or political gains."
However, he expressed concern about the stance that the Korean New Deal budget cannot be cut. Bae stated, "The National Assembly's authority to review the budget is a heavy responsibility entrusted by the people. Saying that not a single won of the government budget can be touched is an abdication of the National Assembly's own duty."
He continued, "Using the newly established lenient fiscal rules as a pretext to ultimately pass the burden onto the people by issuing debt is not the role of the National Assembly. Instead, boldly cutting unnecessary budgets and allocating funds to urgent and necessary items like disaster relief funds is the true role of the legislature. The People Power Party will thoroughly investigate the 100 problematic projects, including repetitive, populist New Deal projects, through microscopic scrutiny until the end."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
