Education Chief Says He Will Resign

Education Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Kim Byong-joon, a close confidant of President Roh Moo-Hyun, said he would resign from his post on Wednesday, 12 days after he took office. His announcement came amid a swirl of controversy over the alleged republishing of duplicate papers and plagiarizing a paper submitted by one of his students.

The decision is now raising suspicions that Kim might have been another code placement of the president’s confidants who have problems, along with criticism that this is another case that shows the personnel inspection system of Cheong Wa Dae has failed to function.

Earlier in the day, the president met with Kim over breakfast in Cheong Wa Dae and heard his intention to step down but declined to comment on the offer immediately.

With regard to this, some wonder if the president’s reservation to make his stance might be a way to convey his complaint to the ruling Uri Party, which has been insisting on Kim’s resignation, a sign that this incident could have implications on the relationship between the party and the president.

“Most of the suspicions raised by news reports have been cleared in the National Assembly Committee on Education meeting on August 1,” said the deputy prime minister, after the meeting at Cheong Wa Dae, speaking of the background for his resignation through his information secretary of the ministry. And he added, “I don’t want to give a burden on the president running state affairs and to strain the relationship between the party, Cheong Wa Dae and the National Assembly.”

Chung Tae-ho, Cheong Wa Dae spokesman said regarding Kim’s fate, “The president hasn’t made special remarks.” However, the president is said to accept his resignation sooner or later after observing the public opinion.

Meanwhile, some of the candidates for Kim’s successor are allegedly Shin In-ryung, the former president of Ewha Womans University, who is reported to have been recommended by Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook, and Seol Dong-geun, the chairman of Presidential Committee on Education Innovation. On the short list in some quarters of Uri Party is Huh Un-na, the president of Information and Communications University.

Kim’s announcement seems likely to delay the appointment of a successor to former Justice Minister, Chun Jung-bae, a move which originally has been expected to take place in the early next week upon the end of the vacation of the president.

jyw11@donga.com