Parliament Normalization Continues into 40th Day of Session... Extension of 2nd Independent Counsel Becomes Key Issue Amid Warrant Rejections

Delay in Parliamentary Normalization and Controversy Over Special Counsel Extension Bill

It has been over 40 days since the start of the second half of the 22nd National Assembly, yet the political standoff between the ruling and opposition parties over the composition of the Assembly shows little sign of abating. As the normalization of the National Assembly is delayed, the vacuum in state affairs is widening. Even the Constitution Day celebration held at the National Assembly on the 17th was transformed into a venue for political disagreement. This occurred as lawmakers from the People Power Party boycotted the event, which was led by opposition parties such as the Democratic Party. At this event, PPP leader Dong-huk Jang instead visited the site of the protest blocking the counting station in Seoul's Jamsil Olympic Park to express his party's stance regarding the investigation.

The hottest topic in the political sphere is undoubtedly whether to extend the term of the second independent counsel. The special counsel extension bill, initiated by the opposition parties, is scheduled to be put to a plenary vote on the 20th. In response, the People Power Party has signaled a high-intensity response, including a filibuster with no changes in their position. The ruling party questions the investigation capacity and neutrality of the special counsel team, arguing that thorough verification must precede any unconditional extension. Conversely, the opposition parties maintain that extending the activity period is essential to strengthening the investigation into unresolved cases.

Independent Counsel Faces Investigation Hurdles... Court Repeatedly Rejects Arrest Warrants

The second independent counsel team, led by Special Prosecutor Kwon Chang-young, is simultaneously investigating key cases including the allegations of preferential treatment for the Yangpyeong Expressway and the obstruction of the arrest of a former president. However, the team has faced significant setbacks in its repeated failures to secure legal coercive measures. The team requested arrest warrants for 17 suspects, but the court rejected them in bulk. In particular, following the rejections of warrants for former Army Ground Operations Commander Kang Ho-pil and former Senior Secretary for Public Discipline Si-won Lee on the 13th and 15th, the warrants for former Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jong and former Deputy Prosecutor General for Planning and Coordination Jeon Mu-gon were also dismissed by the court on the 16th. Legal consensus is that the rejection of warrants for former and current prosecution leaders could deal a fatal blow to the direction of the investigation.

Behind the court's reluctance to issue warrants lies the controversy over the special counsel's objectivity. From the outset of its activities, the team has faced criticism that it is politically biased. A representative example is Special Prosecutor Spokesperson Kim Ji-mi's appearance on a specific internet media outlet last March to discuss the progress of the investigation. The ruling and opposition parties are locked in a fierce battle over these actions. The People Power Party criticizes that extending the term of a special counsel that has lost its neutrality carries a high risk of degenerating into a tool for political retaliation. The Democratic Party counters that a one-month extension is a natural course of action to block external pressure on the investigation and fulfill accountability to the public.

Pace of Yangpyeong Expressway Investigation... Former Minister Won Hee-ryong Summoned

Amidst the sluggish investigation, the special counsel team is moving quickly to identify those at the top of the alleged preferential treatment for the Yangpyeong Expressway route change. The team announced through a media notification that it will summon former Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong for investigation at 10 a.m. on the 23rd. Former Minister Won is suspected of abusing his authority while in office to alter the route of the Yangpyeong Expressway to favor a specific company. The special counsel team has so far focused on securing evidence, conducting search and seizures on the National Intelligence Resources Service and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and investigating former Vice Minister Baek Won-guk. Attention is focused on whether this summons of the former minister will serve as a critical turning point in uncovering the substantive truth of the incident.

The independent counsel also revealed its limitations in investigative capacity. Facing a situation where even the deployment of 150 civil servants needed for suspect investigations was insufficient, they reached a point where they had to extend their one-month activity period by revising the law. An amendment bill containing the extension of civil servant deployment and budget expansion is expected to pass the National Assembly with strong support from the opposition. However, in the process, the composition of the Assembly itself has turned into a political minefield, intertwined with the opposition's demand to occupy all 18 standing committees.

Complex Challenges in Normalizing Parliament... Future of Market and Legislative Processes

The core leadership of the People Power Party within the Assembly analyzes that the opposition parties' occupation of a majority of standing committees will have a negative impact on public opinion. Due to the ruling party's continuous filibustering and intervention in internal Assembly affairs, not only the special counsel extension bill but also the schedule for processing major bills such as the revision of the Criminal Procedure Act has become unclear. This is leading to legislative delays on economic issues, such as macroeconomic policies and bills supporting small and medium-sized enterprises. If the institutional backing for bills dealing with the corporate investment environment and national fiscal soundness is delayed, the pace of the real economy's recovery could also slow down.

Ultimately, the investigative momentum of the second independent counsel hinges on the results of the summons of the former minister on the 23rd and the passage of the bill at the plenary session on the 20th. If the extension of the special counsel fails and the existing warrant requests are rejected upon appeal, the investigation team will face legal limitations forcing them to effectively terminate the investigation. Subsequently, the National Assembly will need to undergo a process of re-evaluating the fairness and efficiency of the special counsel team by gauging public opinion. It is time to find a rational compromise that minimizes national loss due to political confrontation while identifying the essence of the case under the principle of separation of the legislature and the judiciary.