Opposition-led Assembly designates special investigation proposal into first lady as 'fast-track' bill

The National Assembly on Thursday passed motions designating two special investigation proposals as "fast-track" bills requiring expedited deliberations, one of them on bribery suspicions involving a development project and the other on stock manipulation allegations involving first lady Kim Keon Hee.

The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and the minor opposition Justice Party led the motions' passage as lawmakers from the ruling People Power Party (PPP) boycotted the vote by walking out of the main Assembly chamber en masse.

By law, fast-track bills are automatically introduced into a plenary session of the National Assembly after up to 240 days of committee and plenary deliberations. That means the two bills can be put to a vote in December at the latest, ahead of general elections set for April.

One of the special investigation proposals deals with allegations that first lady Kim was involved in manipulating the stock prices of Deutsch Motors, a BMW car dealer in Korea, between 2009 and 2012. Kim has denied the allegations.

The other special investigation proposal is about the "5 billion club" allegations that six prominent people were promised 5 billion won ($3.8 million) each from asset management firm Hwacheon Daeyu, which reaped astronomical profits from a development project in Daejang-dong in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province.

The PPP claimed that the fast-track bills are aimed at protecting DPK leader Rep. Lee Jae-myung from two separate ongoing corruption probes and diverting the public's attention from the issue.

Lee faces charges of corruption and bribery in connection with development projects and donations to a municipal football club dating back to his time as mayor of Seongnam from 2010 to 2018.

He is currently standing trial for the charges. (Yonhap)