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Kim Yong-tae (far right), interim leader of the People Power Party, speaks with Rep. Na Kyung-won during her sit-in protest at the National Assembly Rotunda Hall on June 29. Na is demanding the withdrawal of Prime Minister nominee Kim Min-seok and the return of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee chairmanship. / Photo by Song Ui-joo

Rep. Na Kyung-won of the People Power Party (PPP), who has been staging a round-the-clock protest for three consecutive days, on June 30 called for the withdrawal of Prime Minister nominee Kim Min-seok and the return of the National Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee chairmanship. She also criticized the government’s 30.5 trillion won supplementary budget, claiming it prioritizes vested interests over public welfare.

Speaking to reporters at the Rotunda Hall of the National Assembly, Na declared, “Bipartisanship has disappeared. What remains is the Democratic Party’s one-sided push and legislative tyranny. The ruling party’s bid to seize control of the judiciary committee is a declaration of legislative dictatorship and a black-hearted move to shield President Lee from legal risk.”

She warned that monopolizing the judiciary committee would allow the ruling party to fast-track judicial reform bills such as expanding the number of Supreme Court justices, thereby eliminating legal threats to the president. “The Democratic Party’s insistence on taking over the judiciary committee is not a gesture of tolerance or cooperation—it is a runaway train destroying democratic order,” she said.

Na also condemned the Democratic Party for controlling both the judiciary and budget committees, arguing that it turns the notion of cooperation into a mockery. “Our demand for returning the judiciary committee to the opposition is not a political bargain,” she said. “It is a desperate attempt to preserve the minimum check and balance.”

Regarding Kim Min-seok's nomination as prime minister, Na said, “At a time when the prosecution is launching a full-scale investigation into a criminal suspect, appointing the president’s close associate as prime minister seems like a blatant attempt to build a cabinet that shields the president from legal scrutiny. The nomination must be withdrawn immediately.”

She further criticized other cabinet nominees as “members of a profit cartel,” citing Defense Minister nominee Rep. Ahn Gyu-baek, who has no military experience, and former Korean Confederation of Trade Unions leader Kim Young-hoon, nominated for labor minister. “Is this administration testing the limits of the public’s patience by filling key posts in national security and labor with politically tailored appointments?” she asked. “Some nominees have already been withdrawn. Either the vetting system isn’t working, or the standards being used are far removed from public expectations.”

Na also blasted the supplementary budget, alleging that parts of it—including funding for local currency programs—are designed to benefit specific firms like Kona I, known as a “Lee Jae-myung-themed stock.” She urged the government to “deliver precise and fair livelihood policies,” emphasizing that “what the people want is not performative handouts, but real recovery in their daily lives.”