The National Assembly finally returned to work after 151 days of not deliberating or passing a single bill.

Following a day of continued bargaining, the ruling Saenuri Party and the major opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy were able to ink a final compromise on the Sewol special law just in time to convene a plenary session of the National Assembly. While the representatives of the families of the Sewol ferry disaster victims held a press conference announcing their opposition to the deal, the two deadlocked political parties were able to return to the National Assembly.

The National Assembly, which had been unable to pass a single bill since May 2, passed some 90 bills Monday night. Although they were uncontested bills, the fact that the bills were passed without any debate or deliberation still leaves a bitter taste.

Hectic days and months lie ahead for the National Assembly. It will embark on a 20-day audit of government offices next week. This will be followed by the passage of more bills as well as the review of next year’s budget by Nov. 30 as stipulated by the National Assembly Act.

While the legislators have gone back to work, the smooth passage of bills is far from assured. The National Assembly will have to deliberate on several highly contentious bills such as those on a tobacco tax increase, on service industry development and on housing. Altogether some 30 bills, most of them aimed at boosting the sluggish economy, await deliberation.

Also worrisome is the Sewol bill, which both the Saenuri and the NPAD have pledged to pass before the end of the month as a package together with the so-called “Yoo Byung-eun Law,” which deals with gains made through criminal activities, and a bill on government organization.

While the two main political parties were able to arrive at a last-minute compromise on the bill, the families of Sewol victims are firmly opposed to it. The deal signed Monday night which, in effect, allowed the National Assembly to return to normalcy, left room for further negotiations, negotiations which are guaranteed to be difficult given the Sewol families’ opposition.

The final compromise centers on deciding on four special prosecutor nominees with the agreement of the ruling and opposition parties. A seven-member committee would then make two recommendations to the president. The current law on special prosecutors allows for the seven-member committee to make two recommendations to the president who would then make the final selection.

The compromise left much room for contention and, at the very worst, could make it impossible to make recommendations on a special prosecutor if the political parties fail to reach an agreement. Given the hard-fought battle so far over the Sewol bill, long and difficult negotiations on the special prosecutor nominees seem virtually guaranteed.

In the months ahead, legislators must remember people’s frustration with a nonfunctioning National Assembly. As they grapple with the audits and bills that have been awaiting them, they should keep in mind that they have no time to waste and that people are running out of patience.