By Michael Ha
Staff Reporter

President Lee Myung-bak's administration may consider replacing some officials related to the U.S. beef imports agreement, a deal that has brought criticism from the Korean public and political opponents, a source said Thursday.

President Lee and the governing Grand National Party (GNP) Chairman Kang Jae-sup are expected to discuss the issue during their weekly meeting today. Critics have blamed the administration for allegedly bungling the beef import negotiations.

Lee is also considering bolstering the public and media relations department with a new senior secretary at the presidential office, according the source.

The President has made repeated remarks over the last few days that his administration didn't do an adequate job of communicating with the public in explaining the agreement.

A GNP official told the Hankook Ilbo, a sister paper of The Korea Times, that the administration's top officials believe the U.S. beef controversy could have been controlled better and that the political crisis wouldn't have become this bad if Lee's deputies were better at damage control.
The official said that some in the administration may be reprimanded or replaced when the current crisis is over.

Among the senior officials closely linked to the import agreement is Minister of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Chung Woon-chun.

Another official who has been criticized is Minister of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs Kim Soung-yee. Kim said recently that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, not the agricultural ministry, should take the blame for mishandling the agreement, a comment that started a round of finger-pointing between some officials.

But these two ministers are likely to be spared for now, since both have been on the job for less than three months. A GNP official said some public relations personnel may be held accountable for the inadequate communication with the public.

In a separate development, a civic group has filed a complaint at the prosecutors' office against Kim Byung-guk, a senior presidential secretary for foreign affairs and national security. The People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy, alleged Kim participated in speculative real estate deals and evaded taxes.

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