[Editorial] Replace PM Quickly

Immediately after meeting with Uri Party Chairman Chung Dong-young yesterday, President Roh Moo-hyun decided to accept Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan’s resignation, saying, “I will respect what the ruling party has decided.” Although speculation was rife over the president’s silence over Lee’s “golf incident” during his visit to Africa, he apparently made up his mind shortly after coming back to Korea. Roh’s decision respects public opinion and is a step in the right direction.

Lee is expected to resign only after completing a recommendation for a new chairman of the Fair Trade Commission and a new minister of the Environment, however. Because it will take almost a month to complete confirmation hearings and a National Assembly vote on a new minister even if one is designated quickly, there will be an inevitable sense of instability among public officials and an administrative vacuum.

The side effects of a cabinet shakeup include a postponement of major policymaking, such as after ministers from five ministries and agencies were sacked early this year, and ministers from four ministries and agencies declared their running for the local elections early this month. In particular, with the introduction of confirmation hearing for a new minister, bureaucrats are complaining that nothing can be done over the period of almost a month until a new minister actually takes office.

Worse yet, although the term of Kang Chul-kyu, chairman of Fair Trade Commission, was over on March 9, the government has postponed appointment of his successor. With the post of chairman remaining vacant, the Fair Trade Commission chapter of Korean Government Employees’ Union even released a statement which said, “Considering that the timing of his replacement was predictable, it is the participatory government’s fault that the appointment of a new chairman of Fair Trade Commission has been delayed.”

Local governments are also complaining that the continuing resignation of would-be candidates for the local elections disrupted their authorization and approval work. From the bottom to the top, there is a “comprehensive administration vacuum” when officials leave office.

It is important to place the right person in the right position at the right time. If the government does not do so, the bureaucratic society will fall into complacency and the public will suffer.

The task of President Roh is to minimize the wastage of national power and focus on bread-and-butter issues by reestablishing a stable system of managing state affairs as soon as possible. The first step toward this is to name a prime minister candidate immediately, one who can help the bureaucratic community to concentrate on its job. He should also restore trust in the government and the administration by thoroughly clarifying public suspicion over “golf-gate” which is seen as a case of a too-cozy relationship between the government and the business community.