By Kang Seung-woo
Amid growing public demand to curb lawmakers’ “countless” privileges, it remains to be seen if the National Assembly will prohibit them from holding other jobs during their term.
Lawmakers proposed a bipartisan bill in January to cut back on privileges and they have pledged to handle the bill in this month’s extraordinary session.
The move comes after then-presidential candidates Park Geun-hye and Moon Jae-in vowed to drive political reform that included limiting Assembly members’ authority, during the presidential campaign last year.
Under the National Assembly Law, among the jobs that lawmakers are banned from having at the same time are President, Constitutional Court judge, member of election commission, executives of government-invested institutions and teachers.
However, they can be professors, lawyers and ministers.
In Park’s cabinet, Health and Welfare Minister Chin Young and Yoo Jeong-bok, minister of security and public administration, are incumbent assemblymen.
Along with a minister’s annual salary of 150 million won, their lawmaker position enables them to receive expenses for legislative activity worth over 3 million won per month and other benefits. If attending an extra session of the National Assembly, they are paid expenses, tax-free, for extra-parliamentary activities per day.
They can also hire up to seven aides and employees, along with two interns, using taxpayers’ money, estimated at 395 million won per year.
However, the two ministers have neglected lawmaking activities, with each just proposing one bill between February and April.
Kim Han-gil, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, said, “The ruling and opposition parties should pass the bill to remove privileges for lawmakers at the extraordinary session this month.”
Saenuri Party’s floor leader Choi Kyung-hwan recently pledged to make efforts to pass the bill, and independent lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo is also throwing his weight behind the move to make the bill a law.
However, some professor-turned-legislators are opposing the bill, calling it “too harsh,” claiming that professors are not paid when they take time off.
Lawmakers have been in the hot seat for years for their lackadaisical performance, despite enjoying privileges.
By law, those who have served as a legislator for more than one day are entitled to receive 1.2 million won a month in a guaranteed state annuity after they turn 65, while taking advantage of rail services including the KTX bullet train free of charge and free air travel with first-class seats.