Chief of staff as a communication channel

The presidential chief of staff closely assists the president while leading the presidential secretariat, the control tower of the administration. Working with President-elect Park Geun-hye for a long time as a core member of the pro-Park clan, chief of staff-nominee Huh Tae-yeol is a serious man and veteran politician with three terms in parliament. He seems to be a fitting candidate for such a government position. Huh is expected to play a bigger role than any of his predecessors as chief of staff by doubling as the head of a personnel commission. He must pay extra attention to communication with the president, government, lawmakers and the people, and should deliver all important messages to the chief executive, including harsh criticism.

His younger brother was charged with taking 500 million won (461,000 U.S. dollars) in bribes in exchange for a nomination in the April 11 general elections last year. Huh must do his best to prevent people close to him from becoming corrupt.

President-elect Park focused on raising the expertise and stability of her administration by appointing former government officials to head ministries and government agencies, but chose close confidants to lead the presidential office. Twelve of the 18 minister nominees are former officials or quasi-officials, but four of the six chiefs of the presidential office are members of either the pro-Park clan or the presidential transition committee. The president-elect`s nominations for the presidential office reflects her will to implement her pledges while ensuring a system that allows the Cabinet and prime minister to lead the government in a responsible manner as pledged in her campaign.

Fears are growing, however, over whether the presidential office will overpower the government given the characteristics of the nominees for prime minister, ministers and presidential secretaries. The staff of the presidential secretariat must remain faithful to their roles as assistants. If the secretariat tries to get in the way of the government’s handling of affairs, such as those of administration or personnel, ministries could be rendered nominal and the presidential office could take on all state affairs.

The presidential chief of staff must take a balanced view to make the secretariat perform its role properly. The president’s will is most important, however. The next president must provide a clear guide to the separate roles between the government and the presidential office.

Though the six most important posts of the presidential office have been filled with nominees, the remaining half remains empty. The delayed nominations for presidential staff, which is not subject to parliamentary confirmation hearings, is not understandable. The president-elect must announce her nominations for the rest of the posts as soon as possible so that the presidential office can function properly.

Given that the nominations for top government positions has not been completed six days ahead of the inauguration, it is practically impossible for the administration to be launched in a complete form with the new president taking office. If the presidential office remains incomplete until the inauguration, a smooth beginning is not assured. The president-elect must hurry in nominating her presidential staff.