The lawmakers back from their trips home during the Chuseok holiday claim to have listened to their constituents. They should then know that what the voters want most of all is for the legislators, who they have voted into office and who are paid with their tax money, to get to work.

Since May, the National Assembly has not passed a single bill. Just before Chuseok, though, the lawmakers managed to get together to vote against the arrest of one of their own who is suspected of taking bribes in a scandal involving railway parts suppliers.

Yet, the press statements released Tuesday do not seem to reflect what the lawmakers must have heard from their constituents. Or perhaps the lawmakers heard only what they wanted to hear, as most politicians are wont to do: Both the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy have dug in their heels on their positions.

In a press statement released Tuesday, the day after Chuseok, the Saenuri Party said the people had given them a mandate to end the fight over the Sewol ferry sinking, pass legislation related to the people’s livelihoods, and adhere to the principle of law. It urged that the special Sewol law be considered apart from other bills. The New Politics Alliance for Democracy, on the other hand, maintained that a special law on the Sewol ferry sinking must be passed before other bills can be considered. In effect, the parties’ positions remain unchanged after Chuseok, though it was thought that a breakthrough might be possible.

More than 90 bills await votes, many of them related to the so called “livelihood of the people” and requiring urgent action. The Saenuri Party had said earlier that it would convene a National Assembly plenary session on Sept. 15 to act on the pending bills, even without the cooperation of the opposition party.

The quagmire of the Sewol ferry tragedy threatens to bring down the National Assembly with it. Politicians on both sides should put their heads together and join hands to avert a collapse of the legislative body. Wheeling and dealing is part of everyday politics. If the parties agree on the common goal of returning to normalcy, they should be able to hammer out a deal.

Public opinion polls and an SNS survey show that people’s patience with politicians is wearing thin. If the lawmakers heard anything from their constituents over Chuseok, they would know they should get back to business. That, more often than not, involves give and take.

The Saenuri Party and the Blue House should realize that the Sewol tragedy is not something that they can wish away, nor should it be. The New Politics Alliance for Democracy should remember that the proper place to debate the special Sewol law is at the National Assembly.