Ruling and opposition lawmakers vote in favor of a motion that calls for the designation of special prosecutors to look into insurrection charges related to President Yoon Suk Yeol’s Dec. 3 martial law imposition, in this Dec. 12, 2024, file photo. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Jan. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — The National Assembly was set to hold a revote Wednesday on two special counsel bills targeting impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol over his failed martial law bid and allegations surrounding first lady Kim Keon Hee.
The special counsel bill targeting Yoon calls for the designation of special prosecutors to look into insurrection charges related to Yoon’s short-lived martial law imposition.
The opposition parties unilaterally passed the bill at a plenary session last month before the Cabinet demanded the National Assemblyreconsider its decision in a meeting chaired by acting President Choi Sang-mok.
If the bills fail to gain the two-thirds support required to override the president’s veto, they ultimately will be scrapped. The ruling People Power Party (PPP) holds a little more than one-third of the Assembly seats.
Another bill to be put to a revote during Wednesday’s session calls for a special counsel probe into two key allegations involving the first lady over her alleged involvement in a stock manipulation scheme and interference in election nominations through a power broker.
It is the fourth version of the bill targeting Kim following a similar proposal vetoed by Yoon, which was ultimately scrapped in a revote.
On Tuesday, PPP floor leader Kweon Seong-dong reaffirmed his party’s official decision to vote against the special counsel bills.
Six more bills, including a controversial grain bill that was vetoed by then acting President Han Duck-soo, will also be put up for a revote.
The Grain Management Act, which mandates the government purchase of surplus rice to stabilize prices during market fluctuations. A similar bill was vetoed by Yoon in March 2023 and subsequently scrapped in a revote.
(Yonhap)
