Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, said on the 7th, "We will pursue a realistic constitutional amendment that reflects the changes of the times and the needs of the people while protecting the procedural spirit of the current Constitution and laws."
Representative Kim said this in a speech by the representative of the negotiation group at the regular National Assembly on this day, saying, "Incorporating the full text of the Constitution on May 18 and the Bu-Ma Uprising is the starting point of constitutional amendment, and the reorganization of the power structure can only go as far as the people want."
In a situation where National Assembly Speaker Jo Jung-sik's recent statement that 'constitutional amendments for consecutive terms of the incumbent president is a matter of public choice' caused controversy, this can be interpreted as a will to push for constitutional amendments starting from areas where there is intersection, centering on public consensus.
Representative Kim said, “Eventually, the People Power Party, which condemned Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo, eradicated Hanahoe, and hung a picture of President Kim Young-sam, who made May 18 the identity of the civilian government, will also have to make a choice,” and urged, “I hope that we will complete historical reflection and embark on the path to constitutional amendment together.”
Representative Kim also emphasized his determination to complete political reform along with constitutional amendments, saying, “We will strengthen solidarity with progressive and reform parties, dialogue with moderate conservative forces, and begin discussions on adjusting the number of negotiation groups in earnest.”
In particular, he said, "We will strengthen youth policies and jointly address youth issues beyond the ruling and opposition parties," and added, "We will push for the joint attendance of youth committee chairs from the ruling and opposition parties at government meetings related to youth issues."
Regarding political reform, he suggested, "Let's be simple and mix the seats in the plenary session," and "How about sitting in alphabetical order (of lawmakers' names) rather than by party?"
He continued, "Each party's meeting can be held outside, and it is enough to fight face to face in the standing committee," and asked, "Isn't it worth it to sit together with the two parties and argue with each other, criticize each other's members, and be serious together?"
Representative Kim emphasized, “I will not forget that it is time to thoroughly examine problems and tasks rather than achievements,” and added, “Following the prosecution reform, we will push for police reform.”
He then emphasized, "We will think of all institutional means to ensure that no single detail is neglected in the investigation of violent crimes and crimes targeting the socially disadvantaged," and added, "We will gather all the wisdom to check and improve the efficiency of police investigations, which have emerged as the most powerful."
Regarding the party-government relationship, he said, "We will establish a creative horizontal relationship between the party and the government to become a responsible ruling party that speaks directly to the public's sentiment and provides firm support," and added, "We humbly accept that the time has come for a strict evaluation of the performance of state affairs and will run with the utmost determination."
Regarding the economic issues of people's livelihood, including the three major mega projects, CEO Kim said, "We will put the people's livelihood first and promote growth in all regions. The mega project is a project to revive the Republic of Korea that will spread semiconductors limited to the metropolitan area throughout the country."
In addition, he said, "It is a joint product of a corporate survival strategy and a national development strategy to expand sustainable supply and strengthen the company's future status in response to saturation of the metropolitan area and explosion of market demand. It is a project to revitalize all regions starting from Honam and spreading to Chungcheong and Yeongnam."
Regarding the Future Response Fund, which is a plan to utilize tax revenues from the semiconductor boom, he pointed out, "The problem is how to use it for growth, youth, local regions, and talent training," and "A sense of community for coexistence along with a sense of being a strong nation is needed."
Regarding the real estate issue, he said, "We will promote the 3rd new city at an unprecedented speed so that the people can feel it by 2030," and "We will stably support various policies and supply plans promoted by the government, including quickly starting construction on the previously announced land."
He also emphasized, "We will actively consult with the opposition party and the Seoul Metropolitan Government to expand supply and publicize housing policy," and added, "We will create a consultative body between the ruling and opposition parties on housing policy, and if necessary, we will deal with it continuously and as a priority in the people's livelihood economic consultative body jointly held by the ruling and opposition parties."
Regarding diplomatic and security issues, Representative Kim said, "Considering that North Korea's 'freeze first and then resolve' method may be adopted even if the United States and North Korea achieve a surprise improvement in relations, the Republic of Korea must strengthen its independent security capabilities in advance."
He added, “We must gather wisdom to see whether North Korea’s ‘two-nation theory’ can also be used for peaceful coexistence,” adding, “We will support the government to act as a pacemaker to promote dialogue between North Korea and the United States by proactively responding to changes in North Korea-US relations based on solid security.”
