Rival Parties Remain at Odds Over Parliamentary Committee Formation; National Assembly to Adopt 'Election Commission Probe' at Plenary Session

[Anchor]

Negotiations between rival parties over the formation of the 22nd National Assembly's second-half committees remain at a standstill, primarily due to disagreements over the chairmanship of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. Meanwhile, the National Assembly is set to vote on a plan for a parliamentary investigation into the ballot shortage incident during the June 3 local elections at a plenary session this afternoon (June 18).

Reporter Kim Gwan-jin has the story.

[Reporter]

The Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) has pressured the People Power Party (PPP), asserting that the formation of the 22nd National Assembly's second-half committees can no longer be delayed.

During a policy coordination meeting today, Floor Leader Han Byung-do stated that there is neither justification nor time left to postpone negotiations if they are to create a functional National Assembly.

[Han Byung-do / DPK Floor Leader: The National Assembly must be normalized as soon as possible. We must immediately complete the committee formation and dive straight into resolving pending issues regarding the people's livelihood and the economy.]

The rival parties have failed to narrow their differences over who should chair the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. However, Floor Leader Han remarked that he is willing to discuss the matter if the PPP presents a reasonable alternative.

The PPP countered that the Legislation and Judiciary Committee chairmanship should be held by the second-largest party in the National Assembly.

Floor Leader Jeong Jeom-sik argued that the DPK's refusal to relinquish the committee chairmanship signifies that they have no intention of abandoning the 'special counsel bill on the withdrawal of indictment.'

[Jeong Jeom-sik / PPP Floor Leader: By holding onto the Legislation and Judiciary Committee chairmanship, they intend to intimidate the prosecution within the committee to ensure the withdrawal of the indictment.]

The PPP also continued its offensive regarding the ballot shortage incident during the June 3 local elections.

Representative Jang Dong-hyeok urged that the issue of re-elections should not be left solely to election petitions and court trials, but rather resolved through special legislation. He called for identifying the causes and responsibilities of the suffrage infringement incident through a parliamentary investigation and a special counsel recommended by the PPP.

Meanwhile, the special committee for the parliamentary investigation into the ballot shortage incident held its first plenary meeting this morning. The committee appointed Representative Yoon Sang-hyun of the PPP as chairman, and Representatives Yoon Gun-young of the DPK and Seo Bum-soo of the PPP as the ruling and opposition party secretaries, respectively.

The committee, consisting of 18 members—9 from the DPK, 7 from the PPP, and 2 from non-negotiating groups—will begin a 45-day investigation once the plan is approved at the plenary session this afternoon.

Video Editing: Wi Won-yang
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.