Jung Jin-seok Chief Secretary: "Opposition Ignores National Assembly Act... Intimidating Uniformed Soldiers and Ministers"

"National Assembly Producing Results Through Dialogue and Cooperation" Emphasized
"Low Birthrate, Strong Promotion System Through Establishment of Population Strategic Planning Department"

Jung Jin-seok, Chief Secretary of the Presidential Office, is speaking at the high-level party-government-presidential meeting held on the morning of the 30th at the Prime Minister's official residence in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Jung Jin-seok, Chief Secretary to the President, targeted the opposition party on the 30th, saying, "Although the National Assembly has taken its first step toward normalization through the ruling party's magnanimous acceptance, cases of irregular operations ignoring the National Assembly Act and customs continue without end." He particularly pointed out, "Even acts of intimidating and insulting uniformed soldiers and ministers are blatantly ongoing."

At a high-level ruling party-government meeting held at the Prime Minister's official residence in Samcheong-dong on the same day, Chief Secretary Jung stated, "The traditions and customs that the ruling and opposition parties have painstakingly established through negotiation and compromise are precious legacies of the National Assembly," adding, "We must painfully accept the criticism that this legacy cannot be damaged and replaced by legislation."

He emphasized, "The National Assembly that the people desire is a working legislature that prioritizes people's livelihoods above party lines, the legislative branch, and the executive branch, and produces results through dialogue and cooperation."

Regarding the Semiconductor Special Act being prepared by Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Tae-nyeon, Chief Secretary Jung said, "Since legislative activities on such bipartisan issues of common interest are underway and the normalization of the National Assembly is being promoted on a broad scale, we should actively consider handling livelihood-related bills through consultation."

On low birthrate policies, Chief Secretary Jung said, "Personnel appointments are underway to establish a Low Birthrate Senior Secretary in the Presidential Office," adding, "There is hopeful news that recent marriage and birth rates have turned to an upward trend, and it is important to ensure this momentum does not break."

He continued, "With the establishment of the Population Strategy Planning Department, we will create a strong implementation system and proceed swiftly with effective responses," and said, "The key to the low birthrate issue is forming a public consensus, and we will boldly implement necessary policies by continuously gathering broad opinions from various sectors."

Regarding the security environment on the Korean Peninsula, Chief Secretary Jung described it as "by no means easy," and reported, "On the 25th, the President encouraged the first-ever trilateral multi-domain joint exercise among Korea, the U.S., and Japan, and boarded the USS Roosevelt aircraft carrier to strengthen deterrence and response capabilities against the North Korean nuclear threat."

He stressed, "Peace cannot be achieved by meaningless rhetoric alone," and added, "True peace can only be created based on the strong power and security posture that the President always emphasizes." Furthermore, he said, "We will solidify the international solidarity of the free democratic camp and strengthen the Korea-U.S. alliance and Korea-U.S.-Japan cooperation system."

Referring to the economic situation, Chief Secretary Jung said, "The economy shows a favorable recovery trend with strong exports and high employment rates," but noted, "However, there are still temperature differences across sectors such as sluggish domestic demand and rising delinquency rates among self-employed individuals, so more effort is needed to improve the perceived economy. We must supplement vulnerable areas and boost dynamism with tailored support measures for the self-employed and small business owners."

Regarding the fire accident at the Hwaseong primary battery manufacturing plant, he said, "Lithium batteries have already become part of our daily lives, so the shock caused by this fire was significant," and added, "We will focus on managing the fire incident and establish safety regulations related to batteries with greater vigilance to ensure thorough prevention of recurrence."