Yoon President Also Requested as Witness... Let's Conduct a National Audit Focused on People's Livelihood, Not Political Strife

People Power Party Holds National Audit Countermeasure Meeting
Yoon Jae-ok: "Overall Report Card for the Past 4 Years"
Lee Yang-su: "National Audit Should Not Become a Ground for Reckless Political Strife"

The People Power Party emphasized on the 6th that the upcoming National Assembly audit starting next week will be conducted as a "livelihood audit." They expressed their intention to demonstrate the image of a "competent ruling party" through policy rather than political strife in the final audit of the 21st National Assembly's term.

Yoon Jae-ok, the floor leader of the People Power Party, said at the National Assembly audit strategy meeting that day, "This National Assembly audit, taking place one year and four months after the inauguration of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, will be an important opportunity to completely clear away the negative legacies of past governments, establish the new government's state philosophy and policies, and move toward a new nation for the people."

Yoon Jae-ok, floor leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the floor countermeasure meeting held at the National Assembly on the 22nd of last month. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Floor leader Yoon stated, "There have been several incidents causing public anxiety, such as violations of teachers' authority, abnormal motive crimes, jeonse fraud, and apartments with missing rebar, so it is necessary to closely examine the government's policies related to these issues. We must also carefully look into what preparations the government is making to protect vulnerable groups amid high interest rates and high inflation. Although we are the ruling party, during the audit we will become the eyes and ears of the people more thoroughly to find and supplement the shortcomings of government policies."

He also announced plans to expose cartels rooted in public institutions' moral hazards, civic groups, construction unions, and private education, and to actively respond to issues such as statistical manipulation and fake news. Floor leader Yoon said, "In this process, we will thoroughly exclude personal attacks, reckless questions, and indiscriminate political strife, and instead prove the ruling party's competence through microscopic issue verification and proposal of alternatives."

The People Power Party decided to rename the weekly floor strategy meetings held every Tuesday and Friday as audit strategy meetings starting from that day. Floor leader Yoon said, "We will check major issues by standing committee and ensure appropriate follow-up measures after the audit. Regarding excessive fake news raised, we will verify the facts and deliver accurate information so that this audit can be a sound discussion forum for the nation's future and the people, not a battleground for political strife."

Yoon Jae-ok, floor leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the National Assembly's audit countermeasure meeting held on the 6th. October 6, 2023.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

He added, "As the last audit of the 21st National Assembly, it is no exaggeration to say that this is the final report card for the past four years. It will be a criterion for the people to judge which party has a responsible attitude and the ability to lead the Republic of Korea with a vision for the future ahead of the general election."

Lee Yang-su, the senior deputy floor leader of the People Power Party, criticized the opposition party for requesting witnesses for the audit with the purpose of provoking political strife. Deputy floor leader Lee said, "President Yoon Seok-yeol is also on the witness request list," and pointed out, "Livelihood issues are being neglected, and it only seems like an attempt to nitpick and inflate suspicions solely with the goal of winning next year's general election."

He continued, "Due to the judicial risks surrounding Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party, the National Assembly has been engulfed in relentless political strife and confrontation for the past year, with dialogue and compromise disappearing. We strongly urge the opposition party to cooperate so that the last audit of the 21st National Assembly starting next week can function as a check on the executive branch rather than a forum for indiscriminate political strife."

Meanwhile, ahead of the vote on the appointment of Lee Gyun-yong, the Supreme Court Chief Justice nominee, scheduled for that afternoon, the People Power Party requested cooperation from the Democratic Party for the normalization of the judiciary.

Floor leader Yoon said, "Even if the ruling and opposition parties face sharp political issues and conflicts, it is time to make a sensible choice so that the constitutional system of separation of powers can function normally. The biggest victim of the vacancy in the Supreme Court Chief Justice position can only be the people."