Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myeong (left) speaks at the Emergency Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on the 16th. Senior Reporter Minkyu Park
It was found that the ruling and opposition parties tentatively agreed on the schedule of an additional plenary session on the 27th, which is likely to vote on the motion to arrest Lee Jae-myung, the head of the Democratic Party.
According to Yonhap News, Joo Ho-young, the People’s Power floor leader, and Park Hong-geun, the Democratic Party’s floor leader, gathered their opinions on the 17th.
The Democratic Party proposed holding a plenary session for two days from the 23rd, but the power of the people rejected it on the grounds that a joint speech session in the Gangwon region of the 3/8 National Convention was scheduled on the 23rd, and the plenary session was held on the 24th and 27th.
As the date of the plenary session is set, the motion for the arrest of Lee is expected to be reported at the plenary session on the 24th and put to a vote at the plenary session to be held three days later.
According to the National Assembly Act, the consent motion for the arrest of a member of the National Assembly is reported at the first plenary session following being received by the National Assembly, and then put to a vote at the plenary session within 72 hours following 24 hours. If the plenary session is not held during this period, the motion for arrest will be voted on at the first plenary session held following the report to the National Assembly.
The motion for arrest shall be passed if a majority of the members present at the plenary session and a majority of the members present approve. After that, a date for interrogation (examination of the validity of the warrant) is set before the court arrests the suspect. If the arrest motion is rejected, the warrant is dismissed.
Currently, there are 169 seats in the Democratic Party, and a single vote is possible if all members of the Democratic Party do not attend.
On the 16th, the prosecution requested an arrest warrant for Lee on charges of breach of trust under the Aggravated Punishment Act for Specific Economic Crimes, violation of the Conflict of Interest Prevention Act and the Anti-Corruption Act, bribery under the Aggravated Punishment Act for Specific Crimes, and violation of the Concealment of Criminal Proceeds Control Act.
The Seoul Central District Court sent a request for consent to arrest Lee to the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office the next day. The request is scheduled to be submitted to the National Assembly following going through the Supreme Prosecutor’s Office and the Ministry of Justice and obtaining the presidential approval.
