The 20th National Assembly elected the leaders of the parliamentary standing committees on Monday, finishing the work of forming the legislative body after two weeks of wrangling, but earlier than previous parliaments.
The lawmakers officially began their four-year term on May 30. It was the shortest period to form the Assembly since the lawmakers set a legal deadline in 1994.
The rival parties last week had reached a consensus on how to distribute key parliamentary positions, considered key in creating favorable conditions to endorse their bills and initiatives at each committee.
The Assembly members elected Chung Sye-kyun of the main opposition The Minjoo Party of Korea as the new speaker last week.
As internal competition was high at the parties for the key committee chairpersons’ posts, the two largest parties had also allowed some of the positions to be rotated among their senior members by breaking the four-year positions up into several terms.
New chairpersons belonging to the ruling Saenuri Party to head standing committees pose after their election during the party‘s general assembly on Monday. (Saenuri Party)
In the Saenuri Party, the head post for the House Steering Committee went to floor leader Rep. Chung Jin-suk. It is customary for the ruling party’s whip to take the post, which supervises Cheong Wa Dae and the presidential office.
The Saenuri Party’s third-term lawmaker Rep. Kweon Seong-dong was elected as the chief of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. The committee is often considered to be the “upper chamber” of the Assembly because it can block pending bills from being put to a vote in a plenary session.
After a heavy in-party contest, the former prosecutor is only expected to serve for the first year of the four-year term. After that, Rep. Yeo Sang-kyoo will take over the post the following year and Rep. Hong Il-pyo will serve the remaining two years.
The same rule was to be applied to the management of other top posts of key committees. The standing committees of national policy, strategy and finance and security and public administration will rotate among the Saenuri Party’s senior lawmakers.
The Minjoo Party allowed third-term lawmaker Rep. Kim Hyun-mee to assume the top post of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts. Kim became the first female lawmaker to preside over the committee, which had, until this parliament, customarily been chaired by a lawmaker from the ruling party.
Since the committee has the authority to review and endorse the government’s budget, the opposition lawmaker is expected to set a more critical tone in the process. Kim had served as a speaker for liberal parties and worked as a top aide to former Minjoo Party leader Moon Jae-in.
Rep. Hong Young-pyo of the Minjooo Party was elected chairman of environment and labor, which deals with contentious bills related to the government’s plan to overhaul the labor market. The committee is also to deal with the opposition parties’ push to impose penalty on the manufactures of toxic humidifier disinfectants.
Rep. Lee Cheol-woo of the Saenuri Party was chosen to serve as the chief of the Intelligence Committee. The opposition parties have vowed to abolish the counterterrorism law, which cleared the previous Assembly amid a partisan standoff.
By Yeo Jun-suk (
jasonyeo@heraldcorp.com)
