Seoul: The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) on Wednesday launched an emergency task force to address the nationwide outage of government services caused by a major fire at a state data center last month. This move comes as a response to the significant disruption experienced by citizens due to the fire incident.

According to Yonhap News Agency, around 40 percent of the government's online administrative services affected by the September 26 fire at the National Information Resources Service (NIRS) in Daejeon have been restored as of Monday. The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters provided this update on the restoration efforts.

PPP floor leader Song Eon-seog expressed grave concerns during a ceremony at the National Assembly, describing the fire as a catastrophic disaster that highlighted the vulnerability of South Korea's governmental systems. He criticized the government for the slow pace of restoration, noting that the recovery rate had stagnated at around 30 percent for nearly a month since the incident.

Song further criticized President Lee Jae Myung for participating in a TV cooking show with the first lady while the nation faced widespread disruption of online government services. He emphasized the need for accountability and a thorough investigation into the incident.

The task force, led by PPP Representative Park Duk-hyum, has been tasked with investigating the cause of the fire and developing measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. Initial reports suggest that the fire began when a lithium-ion battery exploded in a server room, and police are currently investigating the exact cause of the blaze.