▲ President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Seoul on April 4, 2023. (Yonhap)

(LEAD) Yoon-grain bill

(LEAD) Yoon vetoes legislation requiring gov't purchase of surplus rice

(ATTN: UPDATES with Yoon's remarks)

By Lee Haye-ah

SEOUL, April 4 (Yonhap) -- President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday vetoed a contentious bill requiring government purchase of surplus rice, marking his first veto of a bill since he took office.

Yoon rejected the revision to the Grain Management Act during a Cabinet meeting, requesting the National Assembly to reconsider the bill amid criticism that it would lead to a waste of government resources.

The legislation, which the opposition-controlled National Assembly passed on March 23, requires the government to buy excess rice if production exceeds estimated demand by 3-5 percent, or if prices fall by 5-8 percent or more compared with the previous year.

"Our government has continuously explained the side effects of this bill to the National Assembly, and I find it very regrettable that the National Assembly passed it unilaterally without a proper debate," Yoon said during the meeting.

"This revision to the Grain Management Act is a 'forced purchase of leftover rice law' that requires the government to buy all of the leftover rice regardless of the market's rice consumption level, using an enormous amount of precious taxpayers' money," he said.

Yoon labeled the legislation "a typical populist bill" that is of no help to farmers or the development of farming villages, which goes against the government's goal of boosting farming productivity and raising the incomes of farming households.

He also called on the agriculture ministry and other relevant ministries to quickly come up with measures to stabilize supply and demand for rice, increase farmers' incomes and develop the agricultural industry.

Political parties have been sharply divided over the bill, which comes as rice demand has been on a steady decline due mainly to changes in diets and eating habits. The ruling People Power Party (PPP) has argued the measure will worsen overproduction of rice and cause prices to fall further, while the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) has claimed it can protect farmers and stabilize rice prices.

Critics also say the legislation is a short-sighted populist policy aimed at wooing farmer voters ahead of next year's general elections.

The president has repeatedly voiced his objections to the bill, saying it would lead to a waste of government resources and the money should instead be invested in developing farming villages.

After the bill passed, Yoon instructed the government to collect the opinions of relevant parties, including farmers' associations, saying he would decide his next steps after careful deliberation.

If a bill is sent back to the National Assembly, in order to pass again, it must win two-thirds approval in a vote by a majority of lawmakers.

The PPP holds more than a third of the seats in the National Assembly, making it unlikely the bill will pass again.

The DP has vowed to introduce additional, similar bills in the event the president exercises his veto.

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