[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jin-young] Hong Ik-pyo, the Policy Committee Chair of the Democratic Party of Korea, on the 25th drew a clear line regarding Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki’s absence from the high-level party-government-civil meeting the day before due to body aches, stating, “He is not someone who would avoid or sidestep discussions due to body aches or health reasons.” He also said about the contentious issue of compensation for losses of self-employed workers in the political sphere, “Payments should be made within March, or at the latest, early April.”
In an interview with MBC Radio’s ‘Kim Jong-bae’s Focus’ on the morning of the same day, Policy Chair Hong explained Deputy Prime Minister Hong’s absence, saying, “It seems the media is paying more attention than necessary. He contacted us two days ago saying he was unwell and it was difficult.” Due to Deputy Prime Minister Hong’s absence, concerns were raised in some quarters about possible friction between the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the party regarding profit-sharing systems and business loss compensation schemes.
He drew a line, saying, “Deputy Prime Minister Hong is someone who clearly states his opinions when there is an issue,” dismissing any overinterpretation.
Regarding the compensation system for self-employed losses, he said, “We plan to speed up the process as soon as possible,” adding, “Individual lawmakers’ bills cannot be regarded as party consensus, but discussions are being gathered at the party level. The bills currently proposed are not the party consensus finalized through party-government consultations.”
Policy Chair Hong emphasized speed, eliminating blind spots, and fairness as key points. He said, “We aim to speed up support, minimize the occurrence of blind spots as meticulously as possible, and consider fairness issues to the greatest extent,” stressing, “We are reviewing legislation considering these three principles.”
Regarding plans for the speed of bill processing between the party and government, he said, “There is no disagreement about increasing speed,” and added, “If the party and government carefully speed up their work, payments should be made within March, or at the latest, early April, preferably processed during the February extraordinary session.”
On concerns about funding raised by some, he said, “We are closely consulting with budget and finance authorities. If support is practically provided, discussions on funding measures must take place, and the details will inevitably be disclosed,” adding, “We intend to compensate to the maximum extent within the limits of fiscal capacity.”
Regarding the possibility of a supplementary budget (Chugyeong), he left the door open, saying, “If necessary, a supplementary budget should be made, but discussions will vary depending on the scale and method.” Policy Chair Hong added, “When utilizing additionally secured funds, we must consider how much burden it may place on national fiscal management.”
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