Why a bigger government?

The Kim Dae-Jung administration set ``a small and efficient government`` as its goal from the outset. It promised to follow the worldwide trend toward diminishing government`s role in the private sector. President Kim apparently was influenced by his realization, gained in the course of his political career under suppression, when he was in opposition to a big governmental organization that forced blind obedience to official directives from above, was a source of problems.

However, the past three years since he took office have seen the edifice of government grow bigger and bigger. Many feel the multiplying hands of government in their daily life and business.

Bigger and bigger:

The incumbent government initiated a sweeping reorganization and reform of its structure. The first restructuring of February 1998 consolidated and cut down the upper echelon of administration, consisting of two vice premiers (economy and unification), 14 ministries, five agencies and 14 administrations that existed through the latter half of the term of former President Kim Young-Sam to 17 ministries, two agencies and 16 administrations. The vice-premier level boards for economy and unification were downgraded to ministries, while the Public Information Agency and two state ministers for political affairs were abolished. The elimination of the vice premier for economic affairs, responsible for overseeing and coordinating economic policies, since has produced many negative consequences. Anyway, an ambitious start was made toward a broad restructuring.

Yet the results turned out differently. A second reform of the governmental reorganization law in January this year effected a reversal and enlargement to two vice premiers, 18 ministries, four agencies and 16 administrations. The vice premier for economy was reinstated, vice premier for education was created and a ministry for women`s affairs that has few parallels in advanced countries was brought into being. Granted, the changes were meant to keep promises made by the president in his election campaign, but the need for a vice premier for education and a ministry of gender equality is open to debate.

The Public Information Agency, which had been abolished on the ground of allegedly manipulating the press and public opinion for the benefit of the government, was revived under a slightly altered name -- the Government Information Agency. There are a number of cabinet-level presidential commissions -- for fair trade, financial supervision, civil service screening and small-medium business. The presidential office of Cheong Wa Dae formerly had six senior secretaries and 33 secretaries, but their numbers increased to eight senior secretaries and 41 secretaries. The part previously played by the senior secretary for social affairs and welfare has been divided into two -- senior secretary for education and culture, and another senior secretary for labor and welfare. An office of senior secretary for inspection and intelligence was added to the staff in the wake of the so-called ``dress lobbying scandal.``

Issues involved in operation and structure:

The presidential commission on small and medium business that came into being upon the inauguration of President Kim has exited in name only, doing little in the past three years largely due to its lack of expertise and capacity for fine-tuning policy. A minor industrialist said he staked high expectations on the commission at first, but today he could not help asking what that body is good for.

The government boasts that it undertook a drastic manpower reduction in the meantime. Nevertheless, a closer look would easily reveal that the downsizing has been merely cosmetic and marginal. A bureau chief of an economy ministry said retrenchment affected temporary workers and lowest-echelon officials for the most part. ``Frankly speaking, the government has little to boast of in the way of downsizing even if arbitrary dismissal of career bureaucrats might not be desirable,`` he said.

The Central Civil Service Commission recently decided to add one senior office and two sections to the existing one office and four sections. A raft of requests made by various ministries and agencies for augmenting their personnel runs counter to the professed drive for a small and efficient government.

Critics take issue with the structure of the Fair Trade Commission, which lately has gone all out to revive and enforce the controversial press monitoring. An insider said the fact of the matter is that no subordinate or intermediate-level officials could dare object to or differ from the words of its minister-level chairman even though the commission is supposed to be a consultative and deliberative body of autonomous nature.. He suggested separation of the policy-making and executive functions of the commission by reorganization.

Expert opinions:

Hwang Seong-Don, professor of public administration at Hankook University of Foreign Studies, defined increased staffing toward the end of the term of office to be a sign of declining confidence in government. ``When advocacy groups opposed the installation of a vice premier for education, the government promised it would not expand bureaucracy, but it is not keeping the promise,`` he said. Hwang pointed out that increasing ranking officials while packing off lower officials with no strong pull is unfair. ``The quest for a central government that is policy-intensive and knowledge-based does not necessarily call for more public servants,`` he said.

Prof. Park Jae-Wan at Sungkyunkwan University said that the government had put forward ``a specific ceiling on the aggregate size of civil service`` as a keynote of its administrative organization, so increasing the number of officials in one office without a corresponding cutback in the staff of another agency is as good as aborting the principle.

Kwon Soon-Hwal shkwon@donga.com