Next gov`t to bolster power and duties of prime minister

The presidential transition committee’s announcement Thursday on the revival of the vice minister-level position of secretary to the prime minister and renaming the Prime Minister`s Office to the Office for Government Policy Coordination shows that the incoming administration seeks to strengthen the prime minister’s role in coordinating state policies.

The setup of equal opportunity committee and social security committee under the prime minister is also being considered.

Yoo Min-bong, a senior member of the transition committee, told reporters Friday that the prime minister’s secretariat will become independent to ensure full secretarial assistance for the prime minister. “So the name of the Office of the Prime Minister has been changed because its function will be to coordinate government policies,” he said.

The head of the Prime Minister`s Office is a minister-level official who has two vice minister-level deputies under him, one for state policies and the other for administrative work. The latter is also the prime minister’s secretary in addition to handling administrative duties.

The transition committee’s intent is to let the prime minister have a secretary as well as the two deputies. The added roles of the administrative deputy are expected to strengthen the authority of the new policy coordination office.

Giving the prime minister a separate secretary means that President-elect Park Geun-hye intends to give the prime minister more authority to supervise each ministry.

“Establishing an independent secretariat of the prime minister and abolishing the position of the special affairs minister will provide more personnel to the prime minister’s office. The prime minister can exercise a significant level of discretion in defining the roles of the two deputies.”

The transition committee also said several presidential committees could be transferred under the control of the policy coordination office.

“We are considering placing the newly established equal opportunity and social security committees and the Presidential Committee on Green Growth under the Office for Government Policy Coordination,” Yoo said.

zeitung@donga.com