No Jeongsegyun or Byeon Changheum in Government Questioning... Ruling and Opposition Parties Clash Over Vaccine and Real Estate Issues

Chairperson No Jeong-hee of the Election Commission, who requested attendance from the People Power Party, is expected to be absent

National Assembly Main Chamber
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] From the 19th, the National Assembly's government questioning will begin for three days. Former Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun and former Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Byun Chang-heum have resigned, so Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance Hong Nam-ki and First Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Yoon Sung-won will attend in their place. The key issues in this government questioning are expected to be COVID-19 vaccine supply and real estate problems. These were contentious issues between the ruling and opposition parties during the April 7 by-elections.

Previously, the People Power Party, which criticized the government's incompetence by focusing on low vaccination rates and insufficient vaccine supply, plans to continue these claims during the government questioning. The Democratic Party intends to block politicization of the vaccine issue while demanding concrete government measures.

Regarding real estate issues such as the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) scandal that surfaced before the election, both ruling and opposition parties are expected to demand countermeasures. In particular, the People Power Party plans to focus on solutions to the LH scandal, side effects of the three lease laws, and the sharp rise in official housing prices. The Democratic Party is also expected to emphasize thorough follow-up measures on the LH scandal.

The opposition will also question the bias controversy of the National Election Commission during the by-elections. On the 14th, Representative Heo Eun-ah of the People Power Party submitted a request for the attendance of Chairperson Noh Jeong-hee of the National Election Commission, but Chairperson Noh will not attend on that day. In response, the People Power Party plans to condemn the ruling party for not cooperating with the attendance request and demand the government's stance on the fairness of the Election Commission.

Questioning will begin at 2 p.m. on the day with the political, diplomatic, unification, and security sectors, followed by the economy on the 20th, and education, society, and culture sectors on the 21st. The plenary session for agenda approval will be held on the 29th.