LKP floor leader's speech prompts political turmoil

Main opposition Liberty Korea Party floor leader Rep. Na Kyung-won, bottom left, waits for the resumption of her speech at the National Assembly Tuesday as Rep. Hong Young-pyo, second row center, and other party members protest her speech before National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang. / Yonhap

By Park Ji-won

The political establishment is being thrown into turmoil yet again following Liberty Korea Party (LKP) floor leader Rep. Na Kyung-won's defamatory remarks against President Moon Jae-in in a National Assembly speech, Tuesday.

While criticizing Moon's North Korea policy, Na called Moon the “chief spokesman” for North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, triggering loud cries of protest from liberal lawmakers. She was able to resume her speech after about half an hour.

Cheong Wa Dae expressed deep disappointment over Na's speech, demanding Na apologize to Moon as well as the Korean people. “This is an insult to Moon as well as the people wishing for permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula,” presidential vice spokesman Han Jeong-woo said in a commentary.

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea vowed to refer the LKP floor leader to the National Assembly's Ethics Committee for insulting the head of state.

In her speech, Na said Moon's North Korea policy risks national security and weakens the alliance with the U.S.

Na added North Korea's negotiations on denuclearization are aimed at establishing its status as a nuclear power rather than abolishing its arsenal, saying “Moon's foreign policy is a risky gamble.”

Citing recent suspension of joint military drills between the South the U.S., Na expressed concern over their weakening partnership which is supported by those joint exercises.

She urged the government to replace key officials on foreign policy such as national security adviser Chung Eui-yong, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, National Intelligence Service chief Suh Hoon and Unification Minister nominee Kim Yeon-chul.

“I feel so ashamed of endless cover-ups and representation for the sake of North Korea. I'm tired of hearing that the South's President is Kim's chief spokesman,” Na said.

Then Rep. Hong Young-pyo, floor leader of the DPK, climbed the podium of Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang and protested what Na said while some DPK members blamed her with loud voices, which led to pausing the speech for 30 minutes.

She added that the LKP will form a delegation to the North, saying, “If North Korea really seeks to denuclearize, we will tell Kim's regime directly that we are willing to provide assistance to Pyongyang in a bold and history-making manner.”

Citing Moody's and the OECD's downgraded prospects on the South Korean economy, she also said Moon's economic policies are unconstitutional and urged the government to stop wasting people's taxes on the wrong policies. Instead, she insisted to hold a bipartisan roundtable meeting to come up with economic initiatives, not like Moon's income-led growth policy.

She also reiterated the LKP's position on electoral reforms that the party will not agree with the four other major parties' plan to introduce a “mixed-member proportional (MMP) representation system” in which seats are tied to the percentage of voters' support for different parties as it is de facto dismantling the National Assembly.