"No Increase Negotiation Without Withdrawal of the Opposition's Reduction Plan"
"Causes Significant Delay in Resolving People's Livelihood Difficulties"
Jeong Hye-jeon, spokesperson for the Presidential Office, is giving a briefing on current issues at the Yongsan office on the 1st. Photo by Yonhap News
The Presidential Office demanded the immediate withdrawal of the Democratic Party of Korea’s unilateral budget reduction proposal for next year, which was passed solely in the National Assembly’s Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, emphasizing that if issues arise in public welfare, security, or diplomacy due to the budget cuts, the Democratic Party will be fully responsible.
On the afternoon of the 1st, at a briefing held at the Yongsan Presidential Office, Presidential Office spokesperson Jeong Hye-jeon stated, "We urge the Democratic Party to withdraw the unilateral budget reduction proposal and engage in a consensual budget approval process."
Spokesperson Jeong criticized, "For the first time in constitutional history, the opposition party passed a budget reduction proposal solely in the Budget and Accounts Committee, which is an act of legislative recklessness followed by budgetary recklessness, ignoring the livelihood of the people and demonstrating the tyranny of the majority."
She added, "The damage caused by this will be borne entirely by the people," and pointed out, "If problems arise in public welfare, security, or diplomacy and the people suffer due to the opposition party’s unilateral budget cuts, it will be entirely the responsibility of the opposition Democratic Party."
The Presidential Office emphasized that the Democratic Party’s budget cuts could cause problems in public welfare and other areas.
Spokesperson Jeong said, "By cutting the entire special activity expenses of the prosecution and police, it has become impossible to properly conduct drug investigations and other criminal investigations, making it difficult to respond to crimes affecting the livelihood of the people," and added, "The drastic reduction of contingency funds severely hampers the state’s basic functions to respond immediately to disasters and calamities during the summer season."
She also expressed concern, saying, "It has made active responses to external uncertainties difficult," and "It will be challenging to respond to the rapid changes in the trade environment expected after the inauguration of the new U.S. administration, and setbacks in strengthening competitiveness in advanced industries such as semiconductors, where international competition is intensifying daily, are inevitable."
In particular, she pointed out, "The support budget for those facing difficulties, such as small business owners and self-employed individuals, has not been increased, causing significant delays in alleviating hardships in public welfare."
Regarding Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung’s statement that negotiations could proceed if the government proposes a revised budget increase, a Presidential Office official clarified, "The starting point for all future discussions is the withdrawal of the unilateral reduction proposal," emphasizing, "Without withdrawal, there will be no negotiations on increases."
Earlier, on the same day at the National Assembly, People Power Party floor leader Choo Kyung-ho also stated, "Unless the major opposition party, the Democratic Party, first apologizes and withdraws the reduced budget proposal, we will not engage in any further negotiations on the budget."
The Presidential Office also rebutted Democratic Party Secretary-General Lee Hae-sik’s remark that if there are objections to the cuts, a supplementary budget should be prepared, stating, "Supplementary budgets are inevitably prepared only when there is a cause," and added, "If there is a cause, it is reasonable for the ruling and opposition parties in the National Assembly to agree and include it as much as possible in next year’s budget."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
