Oh Ki-hyung: "The Amendment to the Commercial Act Is Only the Beginning"
Pushing to Expand Separate Election of Audit Committee Members
Intensive Discussions on Treasury Share Cancellation in September
Oh Ki-hyung, the head of the Democratic Party’s KOSPI 5000 Special Committee, stated that key issues such as the cancellation of treasury shares and adjustments to the scope of breach of trust charges would be "intensively discussed during the regular National Assembly session in September."
At a policy coordination meeting held at the National Assembly on the 10th, Oh said, "On July 3, the amendment to the Commercial Act passed the National Assembly. This is not the end, but the beginning." He continued, "Today, the KOSPI surpassed 3,140. The all-time high was 3,305. We are not far from that." He also remarked, "The cynical saying that 'only the intelligent escape the market' should now be left behind," and added, "The Democratic Party will consistently push for institutional reforms so that 'Korea Discount' is replaced by a 'Korea Premium.'"
Oh introduced the legislative plans following the amendment to the Commercial Act. He said, "There were quite a few people who were disappointed that the mandatory cumulative voting system for large listed companies and the expansion of separate election of audit committee members were not included." He emphasized, "The cumulative voting system and the expansion of separate election of audit committee members must continue to be pursued." Regarding these two systems, he noted, "They were campaign pledges of President Lee Jaemyung," and stressed, "We will push forward without wavering."
Describing the cumulative voting system as a measure to ensure diversity in board composition, Oh pointed out, "When the decision to adopt the system was left to the discretion of companies, about 90% of large listed companies, as of 2023, excluded the cumulative voting system." He explained, "That is why we are proposing to make the cumulative voting system mandatory, at least for large listed companies." Regarding the separate election of audit committee members, he said, "There have been many criticisms about whether audit committees in large listed companies are functioning properly, and there have been ongoing calls to expand the separate election of audit committee members." He explained, "Currently, only one out of at least three audit committee members is separately elected, but this time, we are proposing to expand this to at least two members."
The discussions on the cancellation of treasury shares and the scope of breach of trust charges have been postponed to the regular National Assembly session.
Oh stated, "Since yesterday, various related bills, centered around Representative Kim Namgeun's proposal, are being discussed and introduced in several places." He added, "The review of the principle of canceling treasury shares was a presidential campaign pledge. We will intensively discuss this, along with amendments to the Capital Markets Act, during the regular National Assembly session." Regarding the breach of trust charge, he said, "By the time of this regular session, we hope to collect a wide range of opinions and make at least some progress in the legislative process, and we will prepare together."
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