President Roh’s Appointment of Two Key Officials

President Roh Moo-hyun has decided to appoint Korea Independent Commission Against Corruption (KICAC) Chairman Kang Chul-kyu as chairman of the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) and Suh Bum-suk, vice education superintendent of Seoul, as vice education-human resources development minister.

Lee Nam-kee, the outgoing FTC chairman, whose tenure was supposed to expire in August this year, resigned from the post on Thursday.

Mr. Kang served as the first chairman of KICAC and is a reformist who had shown continuous interest in economic justice and anti-corruption, said a Cheong Wa Dae official. "We expect him to carry out reform tasks such as market reform though strict management."

Meanwhile, as for new Vice Minister Suh Bum-suk, Cheong Wa Dae explained, "He has served in various posts in the education field, and at the same time he has expertise in policy planning. We expect him to assist newly appointed Minister Yoon Deok-hong very well."

Jeong-Hun Kim jnghn@donga.com