People Power Party to Propose Special Prosecutor Act Under All Lawmakers' Names
Special Prosecutor Act Expected to Pass After Ruling and Opposition Negotiations on the 17th
On the 16th, Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party and a longtime friend of President Yoon Seok-yeol, shed tears over the proposal of the 'Emergency Martial Law Special Prosecutor Act' investigating President Yoon on charges of rebellion.
At the People Power Party members' meeting held at the National Assembly that day, Floor Leader Kwon expressed a solemn sentiment regarding the arrest of President Yoon, who was detained by the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit (PCC) and the police on charges of rebellion.
Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the party meeting held at the National Assembly on the 16th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min
He said, "Personally, President Yoon is my longtime friend," adding, "So during the presidential election, I campaigned even harder than for my own election." He continued, "Last night, I was so distressed and blamed myself for not doing better, feeling a deep disillusionment about politics, and I couldn't sleep properly." Mentioning the necessity of proposing the special prosecutor act, his eyes reddened as if struggling to control his emotions, and his voice choked as he found it difficult to continue speaking.
Floor Leader Kwon said, "Today, we discuss the special prosecutor act," adding, "We know very well that proposing a special prosecutor act today to investigate the president who was arrested yesterday, is something that should not be done as a human being before politics." He continued, "I understand your feelings," and "I share the same pain," expressing his anguish.
However, he lamented the reality that he must persuade the proposal of the special prosecutor act to investigate President Yoon. He said, "Today, we must discuss the special prosecutor act," and "We must think about the future of our party and find a path for the future." Floor Leader Kwon said, "The reality our party faces is truly harsh," adding, "Otherwise, after the ruling Democratic Party's rebellion and foreign exchange special prosecutor act passes the plenary session this week, I believe all of you already know what will happen." He expressed despair that if the opposition-led special prosecutor act, which can investigate crimes such as foreign exchange inducement or incitement of rebellion, is passed, the People Power Party could become a direct or indirect target of investigation and suffer devastating damage.
Floor Leader Kwon said, "When I ran for floor leader, I said I was holding a 'poisoned chalice,'" adding, "Today is exactly the day I drink that poisoned cup."
Ultimately, the People Power Party decided to propose its own special prosecutor act. This is a desperate measure to prevent the possibility of large-scale special prosecutor legislation passing by opposition members supporting the opposition's special prosecutor act if the party's own act is not proposed. However, this proposal of the special prosecutor act is interpreted as the ruling party's first step to distance itself from President Yoon.
After the members' meeting, the floor leader told reporters, "Members agreed to propose our own special prosecutor act, thinking that the lesser evil is better than the worst (opposition) law."
The Democratic Party plans to complete negotiations with the People Power Party as soon as their own special prosecutor act is proposed tomorrow morning and immediately pass it in the plenary session. They intend to keep the plenary session open until negotiations are completed and wait for the special prosecutor act to be tabled. After meeting with Speaker Woo, Democratic Party floor leader Park Chan-dae told reporters, "We have the determination to handle the special prosecutor act tomorrow, following the past method of keeping the National Assembly open and waiting for agreement until the last moment when processing the budget." All 108 ruling party members will sign the special prosecutor act.
The ruling and opposition parties will meet at 11 a.m. on the 17th to negotiate a compromise on the special prosecutor act. Under the principle of passing the law tomorrow, they plan to keep the plenary session open at 2 p.m. and continue negotiations.
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