Seoul [South Korea], December 24 (ANI): The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) has announced it will introduce an impeachment motion against acting President Han Duck-soo on Tuesday over his refusal to promulgate two special counsel bills targeting President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee, Yonhap News Agency reported.
DP spokesperson, Rep. Yun Jong-kun, said that the party’s lawmakers unanimously adopted the decision and the motion will be reported to a plenary parliamentary session on Thursday. According to the law, an impeachment motion must be put to vote between 24 and 72 hours after it is reported to a plenary session.
A two-thirds majority is needed to pass an impeachment motion against the president. However, the bar for senior officials is lower at a simple majority, Yonhap News Agency reported.
The ruling People Power Party has said that the acting president should be considered the president of South Korea when it comes to the vote. However, the DP has argued that he should be considered South Korea’s PM.
The decision of DP comes hours after a Cabinet meeting led by Han Duck-soo ended without reviewing the two bills which demanded special counsel probe into Yoon Suk Yeol’s short-lived declaration of martial law and corruption allegations involving Kim Keon Hee.
At an earlier party meeting, DP floor leader, Rep. Park Chan-dae said, “There is no other way to interpret this than (as a tactic) to buy time and prolong the insurrection,” referring to characterizations of Yoon’s martial law imposition as an insurrection.
Earlier the DP had threatened to take measures to impeach Han Duck-soo unless he signed the bills into law on Tuesday. However, the party was reportedly deliberating to wait until Han made a decision on the issue of appointing justices to the Constitutional Court.
Currently, the nine-member bench is short of three justices ahead of a trial on the National Assembly’s impeachment of Yoon over his martial law decree, according to Yonhap News Agency report.
Earlier in the day, National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik, while addressing a press conference, criticised Han Duck-soo for postponing a decision on the special counsel bills and the court appointments with a call for bipartisan negotiations toward a compromise.
Woo said, “The special counsel investigations are a demand of the people.” He added, “Whether he demands reconsideration or accepts them, that is a decision for the acting president to make.”
On the court appointments, Woo said, “Appointing Constitutional Court justices chosen by the National Assembly is not a subject of political negotiation.” A
Meanwhile, a senior official at the South Korean Prime Minister’s Office has expressed regret over opposition party’s threat to impeach Han. Speaking to reporters, he said, “I find it extremely regrettable and believe they will think it over more carefully from here on.”
On December 14, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has been impeached by the National Assembly over his attempt to impose martial law in the country, Al Jazeera reported. The members of the unicameral National Assembly on Saturday voted 204 to 85 to impeach South Korea’s President.
Three members of the National Assembly abstained from voting while eight votes were declared invalid. The voting was conducted through secret ballot, with two-thirds of the vote needed for impeachment. All 300 members of the assembly cast their vote.
Audible gasps were heard from the chamber after the result of voting was announced. Thousands of protesters, gathered outside the assembly, welcomed the announcement with applause and loud cheers. (ANI)
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