By Lee Tae-hoon
The National Assembly failed to meet the deadline for passing of next year’s government spending plan scaled at 309 trillion won ($275.2 billion), for the eighth consecutive year, Thursday.
The Constitution states that the Assembly must pass the spending bill by Dec. 2 to allow 30 days of preparation for its execution.
Bogged down by political wrangling over a free school lunch program and four-river project, it remains uncertain how much longer the Assembly will need on top of the 60-day budget deliberation period, stipulated in the Constitution.
President Lee Myung-bak urged lawmakers to pass the budget bill by next Thursday, the last day of the regular parliamentary session, so that next year’s spending plan could be executed from Jan. 1 without a hitch.
“We can break the vicious cycle of squandering taxpayers’ money near the end of the year if we can start executing the budget from Jan. 1 by passing the budget bill on time,” Lee said in a meeting at Cheong Wa Dae.
The governing Grand National Party (GNP) argues that the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) is chiefly responsible for the delay, saying it is intentionally boycotting the budget review and deliberations of related bills.
“Our party is ashamed of the fact that the Assembly, which is the legislative body, has failed to abide by the law once again this year,” Rep. Bae Eun-hee, spokeswoman of the GNP, said. “What is also a fact is that the DP has intentionally procrastinated on budget deliberations.”
The GNP plans to hold a parliamentary plenary session on Dec. 6 for the passage of the budget bill.
The bill requires a review by 16 parliamentary standing committees before it is voted at a plenary session.
The DP, however, appeared more concerned about slashing next year’s budget for the river project to beef up welfare and defense spending rather than keeping the deadline.
DP Chairman Sohn Hak-kyu warned that the DP will physically block the passage of the spending plan for the fiscal year 2011 unless the GNP agrees to cut down expenditures on the multi-billion dollar river project.
“No matter how much sacrifice we have to make, the DP cannot agree to a spending plan that ignores the need of low and middle income earners,” Sohn said.
Meanwhile, the DP and four other opposition parties held a rally outside the National Assembly building to urge the government to scrap the massive river restoration project.