Moon signs bill on constitutional amendment

World
Europe

President of Republic of Korea (ROK) Moon Jae-in on Monday signed a government bill on revising the Constitution.

If the amendment is passed, it will be the first time since 1980 for a president to propose a constitutional change. The constitution was last amended in 1987.

The bill was signed electronically, the presidential office said, as Moon is currently on an official visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

ROK's Presidential candidate Moon Jae-in from Democratic Party and Ahn Cheol-soo from People's Party attend the plenary session of the special committee for constitution revision at National Assembly on April 12, 2017, in Seoul, South Korea. /VCG Photo

Moon explained his proposal with four main reasons.

Firstly, the president said he promised the people to amend the constitution by concurrently holding a vote in the upcoming local elections, and he will exercise the right given to the president to propose a constitutional change to keep this promise.

Secondly, Moon said the June local elections is a chance that will not easily come around again, when the most amount of people can take part in a national referendum and a way to save taxpayers' money.

CGTN Photo

Thirdly, the president said the proposed amendment in the local elections will also synchronize future elections, as the proposed bill seeks to cut the presidential term to four years from the current five.

Lastly, he said any changes brought by the proposed bill will only benefit the people.

The government proposal seeks to remove the limit on the presidency to a single five-year term to allow one consecutive re-election for a four-year term.

With the president's signature on the bill, the government proposal will now be submitted to the National Assembly, which will have 60 days to review and vote on the bill.

If the bill passes the unicameral parliament, it will be put to a national referendum concurrently with the local elections slated for June 13.

952km