Parliamentary inspection of gov’t, state agencies to kick off for 26-day run

The National Assembly is set to kick off its annual inspection of the government and state agencies Monday for a 26-day run.

On the first day of the audit, 10 of the Assembly’s 17 standing committees will hold inspection hearings to scrutinize the management of the central and regional governments as well as their agencies.

The Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee and the Public Administration and Security Committee will be among the 10 committees to hold inspection hearings on Monday.

Rival parties are expected to clash over a range of allegations surrounding first lady Kim Keon Hee, including her stock manipulation, receipt of a luxury bag and interference with the ruling party’s candidate nominations ahead of the April 10 general elections.

The issue is highly likely to dominate the hearing of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, set to begin at 10 a.m.

The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) will focus on questioning Kim’s allegations throughout the parliamentary audit while the ruling People Power Party will likely hit back at the opposition with controversies surrounding DP leader Lee Jae-myung, including a high-profile property development corruption scandal.

Other thorny issues, such as the alleged irregularities in the remodeling of the presidential residence, are also expected to come under intense scrutiny at the audit, set to end on Nov. 1.