Remarks “MDP is a Group of Partisans” Crippling the National Assembly

The National Assembly ended on Tuesday without continuing the inquiry into the government’s handling economic affairs because of the Millennium Democratic Party’s protest against Grand National Party floor leader Lee Kyu-taek’s saying that the MDP lawmakers were like “pastisans.”

“I got the impression that the MDP assaulted the GNP’s presidential candidate through the questioning of the government in the National Assembly yesterday (July 22), and it was like “a group of partisans,” not the ruling party, indulging in defamatory remarks about the opposition party,” said floor leader Lee in a party senior members’ meeting held in the morning on Tuesday, “

Afterwards the MDP held a meeting in which it asked floor leader Lee to resign as floor leader of the GNP and also called for presidential candidate Lee Hoi-chang’s official apology.

However, the GNP rejected the request saying that even though floor leader Lee made an apology after the remark, the MDP continued to take advantage of the incident politically.

The two parties’ floor leaders discussed the apology issue, and it is highly likely that Seo Chong-won of the GNP makes an apology.

“The GNP continues to make farfetched remarks because presidential candidate Lee of the GNP wants to control the National Assembly, and therefore Mr. Lee should resign as a lawmaker to create a desirable environment in the National Assembly,” said MDP spokesman Lee Nak-yeon.

On the announcement, Nam Kyung-pil, spokesman for the GNP said, “Our party will do our level best to normalize the National Assembly and the MDP should return to the Assembly as soon as possible.”

Yeon-Wook Jung jyw11@donga.com