With the nation in political turmoil in the wake of the National Assembly's vote to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over his short-lived imposition of martial law, several anti-market, anti-corporate bills the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea has pushed through parliament are raising concerns about a further dampening of business and economic activity.

Five bills that passed a plenary session of the Assembly on Nov. 28 pose urgent problems. The bills include a revision to the Act on Testimony and Appraisal Before the National Assembly, and four agriculture-related acts, including the Grain Management Act, which the government worries will ruin the nation's agricultural industry.

They are scheduled to take effect unless vetoed by Acting President Han Duck-soo by Dec. 21.

Under the revised law on testimony and appraisal, companies cannot refuse to submit data requested by the National Assembly, even if the data contains trade secrets or personal information. The bill makes it obligatory for a witness, if summoned by the Assembly, to attend hearings on bills, as well as parliamentary audits of government agencies. Even when a witness is ill or on an overseas business trip, he or she must attend via remote video conferencing. For those who fail to comply, the bill stipulates punishments of one to five years in prison or a fine ranging from 10 million won to 50 million won ($6,900-$20,900).

What businesses worry about the most is the clause making it mandatory to submit even confidential data. The trade secrets of a business could be leaked to its competitors.

The same is true of the clause requiring witnesses to attend parliament for hearings on bills as well as parliamentary audits. Lawmakers tend to question such witnesses intensely, as during their regular inspection of state agencies in October. If the bill takes effect, business people are concerned that they may be summoned as witnesses repeatedly throughout the year. This compulsory measure is said to be necessary to prevent nonattendance without justifiable reasons, but the provision is most likely a breach of constitutional principles prohibiting excessive restrictions on basic rights.

The grain management revision bill requires the government to purchase surplus rice. If the price of rice falls below the average annual level due to overproduction, for example, the government must pay rice farmers the difference. Concerned that the bill would instigate rice oversupply and increase the government's financial burden, President Yoon vetoed it twice. However, the party pushed the bill through again.

These bills are so poisonous that they should be vetoed by the acting president. Or, if the Democratic Party hopes to revive the economy, it should figure out a way to fix them.

Even amid the political chaos following President Yoon's impeachment, the party is pushing again to pass a bill in the final days of the year to revise the Commercial Act. Businesses are concerned about clauses extending the fiduciary duty of boards of directors beyond the company to shareholders, and introducing a system encouraging the appointment of directors chosen by minority shareholders. The provisions are expected to increase shareholder litigation against directors and impede long-term corporate investment.

In the meantime, important economic bills that should have been dealt with have gone adrift. Progress on the Special Law on Semiconductors and the Basic Act on Artificial Intelligence is practically suspended. The abandonment of the semiconductor law is particularly serious. The US, Japan and China are accelerating an expansion of their production bases through enormous support for chipmakers. However, it is uncertain whether the so-called K-Chips Act will be passed this year. The AI law has suffered a similar fate amid the turmoil over impeachment, even though the rival parties agreed that it needed to be passed.

Although the nation's political situation is chaotic, progress on bills central to its future growth should not be left to drift.