Ruling party lawmakers leave a plenary session of the National Assembly in Seoul on Aug. 2, 2024, as voting for an end to an ongoing filibuster regarding a bill on providing cash handouts to the entire population starts. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Aug. 2 (Korea Bizwire) – The opposition-controlled National Assembly passed a bill on providing cash handouts to the entire population Friday despite protest from ruling party lawmakers.
The bill passed in a 186-1 vote held after the Assembly, controlled by the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), voted to end a filibuster by the ruling People Power Party (PPP).
PPP lawmakers walked out of the session immediately after the vote to end the filibuster began and did not participate in the vote for the bill.
The cash handout proposal was among top agenda items for the DP as the 22nd National Assembly opened in May and a general election pledge of former party leader Lee Jae-myung, who argues the plan could boost spending and revive the local economy.
“It is a truly audacious mistake to think that distributing 13 trillion won (US$9.48 billion) would revive the economy,” PPP Rep. Park Soo-min said during the filibuster.
Park set a new record for the longest filibuster in Korean history, speaking for 15 hours and 50 minutes from 2:54 p.m. Thursday to 6:44 a.m. the following day.
Under the National Assembly Act, a filibuster can be stopped after 24 hours if at least three-fifths of all parliament members, or 180 lawmakers, consent to it.
The cash vouchers will range from 250,000 won to 350,000 won for all households.
But it is unclear whether the envisioned handouts can finally be implemented because President Yoon Suk Yeol can exercise his veto power against the legislation.
“As the minister in charge, I would like to express deep regret that the bill was processed unilaterally,” Interior Minister Lee Sang-min said during a briefing. “The government reiterates that, consistent with its previous stance, it is difficult to accept the bill.”
Lee added that the handout will result in an excessive financial burden for the country and could weigh down on the people’s livelihoods by affecting consumer prices and market interest rates.
“Once the revised special bill is transferred to the government, I will propose its reconsideration as stipulated by the Constitution,” Lee said.
After the bill’s passage, the DP was to table a pro-labor legislation, dubbed the “yellow envelope bill,” that aims to limit companies from making claims for damages against legitimate labor union disputes.
(Yonhap)
