President Lee Jae-myung on the 26th took issue with the pace of legislation in the National Assembly, saying, "The Constitution stipulates that anything that infringes on the people's rights or imposes obligations must be done by law, but general institutional design can be done by enforcement decree." He also said, "Public officials who work hard and deliver results should be evaluated accordingly, but if working hard gets labeled as abuse of authority, then what work can possibly get done," adding, "At the very least, let's break away from passive administration ourselves."
At the Cabinet meeting that morning, after receiving a report from Minister Jung Eun-kyeong of the Ministry of Health and Welfare on amendments to the Emergency Medical Service Act aimed at improving emergency medical care for "high-risk pregnant women and newborns," Lee said this. Lee said, "Public officials carry out their duties in line with the law and common sense, and if they are not intentionally doing something wrong, they are exempt from liability, but at some point they get punished or disciplined for abuse of authority, audits, or investigations at the drop of a hat, so everyone tries to avoid doing anything."
Lee went on to say, "The obsession that nothing can be done unless it is set by law has spread across all government ministries," adding, "In reality, matters that could be handled by enforcement decrees, rules, or local government ordinances are being pushed off to the law, and then nothing gets done until the law is set—how can society advance that way?" He was urging proactive administration at the executive level—through enforcement decrees or government ordinances—instead of waiting only for legislation from the National Assembly.
Lee said, "There is too much legislation. It takes too long, and the statute books are getting too thick," adding, "If something does not absolutely have to be done by law, it should be done by enforcement decree or administrative guidelines within the possible scope." He also said, "We have a mountain of work to do, but if we set policy only by clinging to legislation in the National Assembly, we end up waiting and doing nothing until the National Assembly decides," adding, "If the National Assembly continues in its current form, the government cannot work."
Lee has repeatedly raised issues with the speed of legislation in the National Assembly. At a Cabinet meeting in Jan., while discussing plans to collect delinquent non-tax revenues, he said, "It has been nearly eight months since the government was launched, but only 20% of the legislation for basic government policy guidelines has been completed," adding, "The National Assembly is so slow that we can't get work done." He also said, "There are hundreds of bills pending in the National Assembly—at that pace, when will they ever be passed?" adding, "Administration is about speed, and we can't wait."