National Assembly to hold first interpellation session of 2018

Описание: 2월 국회 대정부질문 시작…개헌•최저임금 등 공방 예상

The National Assembly will kick off its first interpellation session of 2018 later this afternoon.
Over the next three days,... lawmakers will question government officials about a range of areas,... including foreign affairs, the economy and social issues.
Our Kim Min-ji has a preview.
Top government officials,... including Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon,... will be fielding questions on pending issues from rival lawmakers over the next three days.
It's the first parliamentary interpellation session of the year,... and the second since President Moon Jae-in took office in May last year.
Rival lawmakers are expected to clash as they put the administration's performance under the microscope.

"The interpellation session kicks off today.... and I hope that it will be a dignified session so that it becomes a good opportunity for the government to better serve the people."
Monday's Q&A session will cover the areas of politics, unification, foreign affairs and security.
It will be followed by economy-related topics on the second day,... and education, culture and social issues on the third and final day.

Topping the list of the most contentious issues is amending the country's Constitution.
The ruling Democratic Party of Korea is expected to stress that it will be aimed at bettering people's lives,... and that a referendum must be held alongside local elections in June.
However, opposition parties will likely argue that the core of the revision should be reducing presidential powers,... but they claim the ruling bloc has no intention of doing that.

Another key topic is inter-Korean relations.
The ruling party will likely call on the opposition's support so as to foster peace on the Peninsula,... starting with North Korea's participation at the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
But the opposition bloc claims the Games are overshadowing the regime's nuclear ambitions,... and that Seoul is letting Pyongyang have its own way.

Also mired in dispute is the recent minimum wage hike.
The ruling party is expected to stress that it was needed to better people's lives,... and that they have introduced support funds for microbusinesses to help them deal with the extra financial burden.
However, the opposition will likely claim that it's not doing either side any good -- and it's actually causing more job losses.
The opposition will also criticize a string of other policies,... including regulations on cryptocurrency exchanges and measures to cool the property market -- claiming these initiatives have not brought the changes promised by the government.
Kim Min-ji, Arirang News.

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