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Nat'l Assembly to submit impeachment motion to Constitutional Court

By Yonhap

Published : Feb. 9, 2023 - 09:45

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Interior and Safety Minister Lee Sang-min attends a plenary session at the National Assembly in Seoul on Monday. Three opposition parties, led by the main opposition Democratic Party, introduced an impeachment motion against the interior minister the same day over the government's alleged bungled response to the Oct. 29, 2022, crowd crush that killed 159 people in the capital's Itaewon district. (Yonhap) Interior and Safety Minister Lee Sang-min attends a plenary session at the National Assembly in Seoul on Monday. Three opposition parties, led by the main opposition Democratic Party, introduced an impeachment motion against the interior minister the same day over the government's alleged bungled response to the Oct. 29, 2022, crowd crush that killed 159 people in the capital's Itaewon district. (Yonhap)

The National Assembly was set to submit on Thursday a motion calling for the impeachment of Interior Minister Lee Sang-min over last year's Itaewon crowd crush, a day after the main opposition railroaded the motion in a vote.

Rep. Kim Do-eup of the ruling People Power Party, who leads the parliamentary legislative committee, said the committee will submit a resolution on the impeachment to the Constitutional Court at 10 a.m.

On Wednesday, the main opposition-controlled Assembly passed the motion in the first-ever impeachment of a Cabinet member. The move suspended Lee from his duties until the Constitutional Court decides whether to endorse or reject the motion.

The main opposition Democratic Party and two minor parties introduced the impeachment motion earlier this week to hold Lee accountable for the government's allegedly bungled response to the Oct. 29 crowd crush that killed 159 people.

The court has 180 days to rule on the case. (Yonhap)