With politics moving into full parliamentary audit mode immediately after the Chuseok holiday, the Democratic Party of Korea is shifting its approach from last year's focus on holding the Yoon Suk-yeol administration to account toward what it calls a policy-focused audit. Unlike last year, when the party concentrated its firepower on assigning responsibility to the previous government and pressing allegations, this year — its second in power — it plans to put greater weight on supporting the Lee Jae-myung administration's policy agenda and reviewing livelihood measures.
The National Assembly will begin its parliamentary audit on Oct. 6, according to political sources on the 27th. The Democratic Party has formally adopted a policy-focused audit as its guiding approach. At a general meeting of party lawmakers on the 17th, floor leader Han Byung-do said the audit "must be made a policy audit," calling on lawmakers to focus on developing policy alternatives for people's livelihoods and to respond firmly to the opposition's political offensives and futile partisan disputes. On requests to summon business figures, including heads of large conglomerates, the party also set a policy of avoiding requests aimed at public shaming.
It marks a clear departure from last year. In the audit held shortly after the Lee Jae-myung administration took office, the Democratic Party concentrated on exposing policy failures and various allegations involving the Yoon Suk-yeol administration. In the Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs and Startups Committee, it pressed officials from the previous government on their responsibility for matters including the Great Whale Project, a deep-sea gas exploration venture in the East Sea.
Now in its second year in power, the party has changed its strategy, as the implementation and results of the current government's policies become the main subject of scrutiny. The plan is to focus on reviewing progress on the state agenda and addressing shortcomings rather than digging into policy missteps. The floor leadership is also said to have asked lawmakers to refrain as much as possible from summoning business figures and to coordinate so that the same executive is not called before multiple standing committees.
The shift is showing up in the selection of witnesses. For the audit of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the committee approved Choi Seung-ho, head of the Samsung Electronics chapter of the Samsung Group's industry-wide labor union, over the issue of performance bonuses at Samsung Electronics, and BS Group Chairman Lee Ki-seung in connection with a corporate city project. For the audit of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, MBK Partners Chairman Kim Byung-joo will appear as a witness to answer questions on the Homeplus crisis and losses suffered by merchants with stores in its outlets.
By contrast, Samsung Electronics Chairman Jay Y. Lee and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, whom the People Power Party sought to question over semiconductor cluster investment plans in the Honam region, were left off the first list of witnesses. Requests to summon Kim Yong-beom, former head of the presidential policy office, and Kang Hoon-sik, presidential chief of staff, were also rejected. The People Power Party argues that the attendance of those involved is needed to establish how the large-scale investment decisions were made and what role the government played. The Democratic Party counters that caution is required before summoning conglomerate heads as witnesses for political attacks. Even so, ruling and opposition members of the committee agreed to hold further talks on whether to approve Lee and Chey as witnesses.
Although the Democratic Party has raised the banner of a policy audit, contentious issues on which the two sides will clash sharply are piling up. In the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the dispute over Supreme Court Chief Justice Jo Hee-de's refusal to renominate a Supreme Court justice is expected to emerge as the central point of contention. The Democratic Party plans to use the audit to press for details on how the refusal came about. Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Dong-ah has said the party "will establish the facts in detail at the coming parliamentary audit."
Clashes are also expected in foreign affairs and security. With the recent explosion in the Demilitarized Zone and the repatriation of North Korean soldiers held as prisoners in Ukraine emerging in succession as pressing issues, the National Defense Committee and the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee are expected to be key battlegrounds. The Democratic Party maintains that sensitive security matters should not be made the object of partisan strife, while the People Power Party counters that the government's response and the circumstances of the incidents must be examined transparently.
In the economy and livelihood area, the current government's main policy results, including housing policy, will be put to the test. Follow-up steps in prosecution reform, such as the Public Prosecution Office and the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, which launch on Oct. 2, are also cited as major points of contention. As the Democratic Party puts a policy audit at the forefront to support the state agenda, and the People Power Party takes aim at various controversies surrounding the current government, the two sides are expected to fight harder over control of the audit.
