Acting president vetoes bill limiting his powers to appoint Constitutional Court justices
Acting President Han Duck-soo, center, salutes the national flag during a Cabinet meeting at the government complex in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap
Acting President Han Duck-soo on Tuesday vetoed a bill limiting his powers to name or appoint justices to the Constitutional Court.
A motion demanding parliamentary reconsideration of the revision to the Constitutional Court Act was approved during a Cabinet meeting led by Han and will be sent back to the National Assembly for a revote.
"The proposed amendment stipulates into law important points related to the basics of the constitutionally provided governance structure and separation of powers, and contains substance in conflict with the current rules of the Constitution," Han said during the meeting.
"Article 71 of the Constitution mandates the prime minister to exercise the president's powers by proxy when the president is unable to carry out his duties and does not put separate restrictions on the scope of the acting president's duties," he added.
Korea is currently without an elected leader following the April 4 impeachment of former President Yoon Suk Yeol.
The amendment to the Constitutional Court Act passed through the National Assembly on April 17 after the liberal Democratic Party introduced it to block the appointment of two Constitutional Court justice nominees named by Han.
The Constitutional Court is made up of nine justices, with three each chosen by the president, the National Assembly and the Supreme Court chief justice.
The bill calls for prohibiting an acting president from naming or appointing the three justices assigned to the president while allowing them to appoint the three chosen by the Assembly and the three picked by the Supreme Court chief justice.
The two nominees named by Han were the president's portion.
Meanwhile, Han voiced optimism on last week's "2+2" trade talks between Korea and the United States, saying the two sides were able to reaffirm their "solid bilateral relationship."
" Korea and the U.S. are in the process of coming up with a mutually beneficial solution, but we must overcome numerous obstacles until the end of the negotiations in July, and at times, we will face situations where we must decide for the sake of national interest," he said.
On the government's extra budget proposal, which is pending approval by the National Assembly, Han again stressed the importance of speed.
"In consideration of the difficult economic situation, and on the premise that it meets the basic financial principles of spending the people's precious taxes most effectively and that it will be passed swiftly, the government will approach the National Assembly's extra budget discussions in a flexible and forward-looking manner," he said.