 ▲ 청와대 ©뉴시스 |
청와대가 4일 6·3 지방선거 투표용지 부족 사태에 대한 대통령의 대책 마련·책임 규명 지시 관련해 “중앙선거관리위원회에 대한 행정부의 직접적 제재를 의미하는 건 아니다”고 했다.
강유정 수석대변인은 이날 오후 언론 공지에서 제36차 수석보좌관회의 결과 관련해 "이재명 대통령은 국민 참정권을 훼손하는 일이 다시 발생하면 안되며 신뢰할 만한 대책이 조속 마련돼야 한다고 말했다”며 이같이 전했다.
그러면서 "행정부에 의한 제재를 지시한 건 아니며 참정권이 흔들리지 않도록 선관위가 책임있는 조치를 다 하란 뜻”이라며 “선관위는 이번 사안을 무겁게 받아들여 스스로 철저한 점검·후속 조치에 나서야 한다”고 덧붙였다.
또 “선관위의 책임 있는 조치를 당부하는 내용이라 보면 된다”며 “행정부의 직접 제재는 아니다”고 덧붙였다.
이같은 청와대 입장은 향후 정부 차원 직무감찰·책임자 처벌 등이 배제된 채 선관위가 자체 조사를 통해 대책을 마련하라는 함의로 보인다. 공권력의 선거관리 부실로 국민 참정권이 침해된 초유의 사태 책임론에서 무관하다는 형국으로 전날 밤 대응 스태스와 같다.
전날 6·3 지선 본투표일에 서울 송파·강남·광진·동작 등 투표소 14곳에서 투표용지가 소진돼 투표가 중단되자 청와대는 이날 밤 "선관위가 대응해야 할 문제”란 입장을 냈으나 개표 중단·재선거 요구 등 거센 반발이 일었다.
그러자 이날 밤 늦게 재차 강 수석대변인은 언론 공지를 통해 "중앙선관위는 국민 참정권을 보장하는 헌법 기관으로서 일부 지역 주민들 투표권 행사·개표 관리에 차질 없도록 책임 있는 조치를 하기 바란다”고 했다.
영문 기사의 [전문]입니다. '구글번역'은 이해도 높이기를 위해 노력하고 있습니다. 영문 번역에 오류가 있을 수 있음을 전제로 합니다.<*The following is [the full text] of the English article translated by 'Google Translate'. 'Google Trworking hard to improve understanding. It is assumed that there may be errors in the English translation.
Blue House: "NEC Must Take Thorough Follow-up Measures on Its Own Regarding Ballot Shortage"
Kang Yu-jeong: "It is not a directive for the administration to impose sanctions, but a demand for the National Election Commission to take all responsible measures to ensure that suffrage rights are not undermined." The situation is one where the issue of responsibility is being dismissed in the unprecedented crisis where citizens' suffrage rights were infringed upon due to the mismanagement of elections by public authorities.
-kihong Kim reporter
On the 4th, the Blue House stated regarding the President’s directive to devise countermeasures and identify those responsible for the ballot shortage during the June 3 local elections, “This does not imply direct sanctions by the administration against the National Election Commission.”
Senior Spokesperson Kang Yoo-jung conveyed this during a press announcement this afternoon regarding the results of the 36th Senior Presidential Aides Meeting, stating, “President Lee Jae-myung said that incidents undermining the people’s right to vote must not happen again and that credible measures must be prepared promptly.”
She added, “This does not mean a directive for sanctions by the administration, but rather that the NEC should take all responsible measures to ensure that the right to vote is not undermined,” and emphasized, “The NEC must take this matter seriously and undertake thorough self-inspections and follow-up measures.”
She further clarified, “It should be viewed as a request for responsible action by the NEC,” adding, “It is not a direct sanction by the administration.”
This stance by the Blue House appears to imply that the NEC should devise countermeasures through its own internal investigation, while excluding future government-level performance audits or punishment of those responsible. It is a situation where they appear to be unrelated to the debate over responsibility for the unprecedented infringement of citizens' right to vote due to the mismanagement of elections by public authorities, mirroring the response stance from the previous night.
On the previous day, when voting was suspended at 14 polling stations in Seoul—including Songpa, Gangnam, Gwangjin, and Dongjak—due to a shortage of ballots on the main day of the June 3 local elections, the Blue House issued a statement that night saying it was "a matter for the National Election Commission to handle." However, this sparked fierce backlash, including demands to halt vote counting and hold a re-election.
Consequently, late that night, Senior Spokesperson Kang once again issued a press announcement stating, "As a constitutional body guaranteeing citizens' right to vote, we hope the National Election Commission will take responsible measures to ensure there are no disruptions in the exercise of voting rights and vote counting management for residents in certain areas."
