The governing party on Tuesday vowed to push through the parliamentary confirmation of Prime Minister nominee Hwang Kyo-ahn despite the main opposition party’s objection, signaling a partisan showdown at a parliamentary session this week.

The ruling Saenuri Party said it would unilaterally approve Hwang’s confirmation at an upcoming National Assembly plenary session unless the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy accepted the nomination.

The Assembly is slated to gather for an interpellation session on Thursday and Friday.

But Saenuri Party floor leader Rep. Yoo Seung-min said Tuesday that the party may push to expedite the process by pushing to open a separate plenary session on Wednesday.

“We must complete Hwang’s confirmation no later than tomorrow,” Yoo said. “In the meantime, we will continue our efforts to beat the NPAD. Even if we fail, we will convince the speaker to put the confirmation to a vote and unilaterally approve it.”

Yoo sent out a text message to the fellow lawmakers and urged them to attend the vote -― a move to secure enough votes for Hwang’s confirmation bill, which requires the majority’s approval. The Saenuri Party could unilaterally pass the bill as it holds a majority 160 of 298 parliamentary seats.

The NPAD, however, criticized the move and repeated its objection to an “unfit” candidate for the nation’s second-in-command. NPAD asserts that Hwang has failed to give sufficient explanations to the allegations such as influence-peddling and lobbying attempts when he faced the parliamentary hearing.

“(The Saenuri Party) is blackmailing us and it is wrong,” said NPAD chairman Rep. Moon Jae-in. “I think they are self-conscious about how Cheong Wa Dae would react. Both political parties need to discuss and coordinate on (Hwang’s confirmation),” said Moon.

Meanwhile, acting Prime Minister Choi Kyung-hwan urged the lawmakers to fill the post for his replacement, criticizing them for delaying the confirmation process “without obvious reason” amid the Middle East respiratory syndrome outbreak that has dampened the nation’s economy.

“I don’t understand why the Assembly is dragging its feet (over the confirmation),” he said. “The longer we delay the confirmation, the less likely we will address the MERS outbreak and its economic fallout. The Assembly doesn’t have a sufficient case to delay the confirmation.”

By Yeo Jun-suk (jasonyeo@heraldcorp.com)