Seoul: National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik on Wednesday vowed to take an active role if a bill on a planned extra budget is submitted to parliament, emphasizing that stabilizing the livelihoods of citizens is a top priority for lawmakers.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Woo made these remarks as he marked one year in office, following President Lee Jae-myung's directive to his aides to expedite the formulation of an extra budget aimed at bolstering economic growth. This comes in the wake of a surprise martial law attempt by former President Yoon Suk Yeol on December 3 of the previous year, which led to prolonged political turmoil and economic uncertainties.
Woo highlighted the importance of stabilizing people's lives and declared his intention to play an "active role" in the supplementary budget process. He also underscored the necessity of carefully timing discussions on constitutional reform. He noted that these discussions should occur when state affairs are stable and should involve dialogue with political parties, civil society, and the government.
Initially, Woo suggested that voting on constitutional reform should coincide with the presidential elections. However, he later proposed deferring the debate until after the elections, following resistance from the ruling Democratic Party. Additionally, Woo announced his plans to visit the United States soon to engage in discussions at the parliamentary level regarding bilateral tariff negotiations.