Dozens of pending impeachment

[Anchor]

Since the Yoon Suk Yeol government took office, the Democratic Party has proposed a total of 29 impeachment motions.

So far, four impeachment motions, including two at the ministerial level like those against former Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min and Korea Communications Commission(KCC) Chairperson Lee Jin-sook, have been dismissed.

Among these, excluding those who resigned after being impeached, such as former KCC Chairperson Lee Dong-kwan and Kim Hong-il, there are currently nine impeachment trials remaining.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo's impeachment motion was passed by the National Assembly on Dec. 27, Minister of Justice Park Sung-jae's on Dec. 12, and Board of Audit and Inspection Chairperson Choe Jae-hae's on Dec. 5, but the first hearings have not yet begun.

As a result, they remain suspended from duty, with interim leadership filling their roles.

The People Power Party (PPP) has urged the Constitutional Court to expedite the remaining impeachment trials, while the Democratic Party insisted that today’s (1.23) ruling does not grant immunity and vowed to hold officials accountable for future misconduct.

This is a report by Park Young-min.

[Report]

"A wake-up call against legislative dictatorship and media control through excessive impeachment."

The People Power Party urged the Democratic Party to take responsibility and apologize for the forced impeachment.

[Kwon Young-se/Chairman of the People Power Party Emergency Response Committee: "I believe that the Democratic Party, which has made unreasonable impeachment motions, must take responsibility."]

At the same time, they urged the Constitutional Court to expedite the pending impeachment trials against Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and Chairperson Choe Jae-hae.

[Kwon Seong-dong/Leader of the People Power Party: "Just by paralyzing the Korea Communications Commission for 172 days, it's like (the Democratic Party) has succeeded in impeaching Chair Lee Jin-sook."

They proposed that the Democratic Party expedite the nomination process for the National Assembly's KCC member.

The opposition party expressed regret while respecting the Constitutional Court's decision.

They pointed out that the court had previously highlighted the illegality of the two-person structure of the KCC multiple times.

Regarding Chairperson Lee Jin-sook, they warned that the Constitutional Court did not grant a get-out-of-jail-free card and advised against "acting rashly."

[Lee Jeong-heon/Democratic Party Member: "The ruling simply fell short of the six votes needed for removal; it does not mean the two-member decision-making system was deemed legal."]

In response to the ruling party's demand for recommendations for KCC members, they drew the line by stating that the appointment of Constitutional Court Justice Ma Eun-hyuk should take priority.

[Kim Hyun/Democratic Party Member: "We have not appointed a Constitutional Court justice for those recommended by our side, the opposition party, and those agreed upon by both parties, right? Acting Chairperson Choi Sang-mok."]

The presidential office stated, "We hope that the KCC will restore its functions and handle the pending issues well."

This is KBS News, Park Young-min.