Ruling and opposition parties to hold confirmation hearing for Kim Oh-soo, Prosecutor General nominee, on the 26th

Vacant Special Inspector Position for 4 Years: Appointment Procedure Initiated
Non-controversial Bills to Be Passed at Plenary Session on 21st

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy reporters Naju-seok and Park Joon-yi] The ruling and opposition parties have agreed to hold the confirmation hearing for Kim Oh-soo, the nominee for Prosecutor General, on the 26th. They also agreed to initiate the appointment process for the Special Inspector General position, which has been vacant for the past four years.

On the 18th, Han Byung-do, the senior deputy floor leader of the Democratic Party, and Choo Kyung-ho, the senior deputy floor leader of the People Power Party, met at the National Assembly and reached an agreement on the parliamentary schedule.

Regarding the issue of holding the confirmation hearing for the Prosecutor General, the two sides debated who would chair the hearing committee, as the chairperson position of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee became vacant following the election of Yoon Ho-jung as the floor leader of the Democratic Party. They ultimately agreed to proceed with the confirmation hearing with Yoon serving as the chairperson of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. Initially, the ruling party planned to hold a plenary session to nominate Park Kwang-on as the new chairperson of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee to replace Yoon. However, they decided not to proceed with the appointment process for the chairperson at the plenary session on the 21st. The People Power Party had insisted that the chairperson position, which had been held by a ruling party member, should be returned to the opposition party in order to proceed with the confirmation hearing, but they have stepped back from this position.

They also agreed to promptly proceed with the National Assembly appointment process for the vacant Special Inspector General position. On the previous day, Lee Cheol-hee, the senior secretary for political affairs at the Blue House, appeared on MBC Radio’s “Kim Jong-bae’s Focus” and requested that the National Assembly follow the schedule. The People Power Party had previously claimed that "the Blue House has never sent an official letter requesting a recommendation," arguing that there had been no consultation process. With this bipartisan agreement, the appointment process is expected to accelerate.

The ruling and opposition parties also agreed to hold a plenary session on the 21st to handle non-controversial bills.