The adoption of the confirmation report for Prime Minister nominee Han Seong-sook showed signs of failure on June 29. Members of the Democratic Party and independent lawmaker Choi Hyuk-jin attended the special committee meeting, while members of the People Power Party were absent.
During the meeting held at the National Assembly, Baek Hye-ryun, the chair of the confirmation committee, expressed regret over the absence of People Power Party members, stating, "Although they are not here, I believe they have sincerely participated in the confirmation hearing."
She added, "I earnestly request that both parties adopt the report together, even if it includes disqualification opinions as in the past."
Baek urged the People Power Party members to ensure the report's adoption by the end of the day, asking Democratic Party secretary Kim Han-kyu to negotiate with People Power Party secretary Kang Seung-kyu during the remaining time.
Kim Han-kyu emphasized the need to adopt the report by the end of the day in accordance with the confirmation hearing law, noting that discussions had taken place with Kang regarding the schedule for the report's adoption. However, he stated that the People Power Party was reluctant to agree due to ongoing negotiations over the composition of the National Assembly.
Lawmaker Park Seon-won questioned the connection between the prime minister's confirmation hearing and the assembly's composition, saying, "Why are we discussing baseball in a soccer field? It's like banning players from the baseball field because they couldn't score in soccer."
Lawmaker Kim Dong-a criticized the People Power Party's objections, stating that the issues they raised had already been addressed during the confirmation hearing for the Minister of SMEs and Startups, which had been resolved at that time. He described the current objections as a flimsy excuse.
Independent lawmaker Choi Hyuk-jin condemned the use of assembly composition as a bargaining chip, asserting that the public would not tolerate such tactics.
Meanwhile, the National Assembly's confirmation of the Prime Minister requires a majority of the total members present and a majority of those present to vote in favor. The Democratic Party holds 161 seats, allowing it to proceed with the confirmation without the report's adoption.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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