[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] "Compensation for losses is a debt that the state must pay to its citizens. According to Article 23, Paragraph 3 of the Constitution, when property rights are restricted for public necessity, fair compensation must be provided. Even before legislative measures, the government should immediately take possible actions such as reducing electricity charges."
On the 25th, Choi Seung-jae, a member of the People Power Party, emphasized in a phone interview with Asia Economy that the government should hurry to provide support that it can offer even outside of the Loss Compensation Act.
Choi said, "Places like karaoke rooms have to pay basic electricity charges regularly, and if the four major insurance premiums are overdue, their bank accounts get seized," adding, "These are areas where the government can intervene through administrative measures alone." He stressed that before discussions in the political sphere about supplementary budgets or related legislation, the government should do what it can first.
Last September, Choi proposed an amendment to the 'Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act' to allow the state to compensate for losses caused by quarantine-related administrative measures. This was the first Loss Compensation Act for small business owners related to COVID-19 in the 21st National Assembly. In January this year, he also proposed a similar amendment through the Small Business Basic Act. However, this time, instead of a time-consuming legislative amendment, the support is designed to be provided through a revision of the enforcement decree. Although the bills belong to different legal systems, the reason for consecutively proposing them is the necessity for a swift response to protect self-employed individuals who are increasingly facing worsening conditions.
He criticized the government and the ruling party for being passive on this issue. Choi said, "The government and ruling party could have compensated for losses all along, but they suddenly act as if they are rushing now," adding, "It only came out now because small business owners protested against business restrictions."
Regarding the ruling party's proposal to compensate even general businesses, Choi expressed skepticism. He said, "First, it is right to save those who seem to be on the verge of collapse," adding, "Just because someone is drowning doesn't mean you try to save everyone. Who in this era is not struggling?"
He also opposed the loss compensation system based on minimum wage compensation or rent support. Choi said, "People confuse support with compensation, but compensation cannot be made through rent or wage support," noting, "Each store's situation is different." Instead, he suggested support measures based on previous year's sales, among other criteria.
Regarding securing funds for loss compensation, he proposed reallocating the budget. Choi stated, "If unnecessary budgets are cut, the financial authorities can allocate the related budget."
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