Moon replaces 16 vice ministers

By Lee Min-hyung

Lee Ho-seung, first vice minister of economy and finance

Koo Yun-cheol, second vice minister of economy and finance

President Moon Jae-in carried out a major reshuffle of vice ministers on Friday, with a view to revitalizing the economy and tightening discipline within the administration as his approval ratings continue to fall.

Moon appointed seven new vice ministers and nine vice minister-level officials, Cheong Wa Dae said.

The President has made it his top priority to build a more dynamic government by making the personnel changes, it explained.

The new appointees include Lee Ho-seung, the first vice minister of economy and finance. Lee served as a former secretary for job planning at the presidential office. Koo Yun-cheol, a former chief of the ministry’s budget management division, was appointed as second vice finance minister.

Lee is cited as an expert in macroeconomics, so expectations are that he will help the government gain economic growth by producing relevant policies at the finance ministry, Cheong Wa Dae said.

Koo has innovative leadership in budget planning and finance affairs, according to the presidential office. It added the new second vice finance minister would contribute to generating tangible outcomes to boost the economy.

“The reshuffle is aimed at forming a more dynamic government that can vitalize the local economy,” presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said at a media briefing Friday.

“The shake-up also reflects President Moon’s willingness to create outcomes that the public can actually recognize,” Kim said.

Other officials include Moon Mi-ok, former presidential aide for science and technology, who was appointed first vice minister of science and ICT. Kim Hak-do, ex-head for the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology, has been named as vice minister of small- and medium-sized enterprises and startups.

This is the first time since June last year that the President has conducted a large-scale vice ministerial reshuffle.

The decision came as Moon’s approval ratings are falling sharply.

According to Gallup Korea data, Friday, Moon’s approval rating has fallen to a record-low 45 percent since he took office in May last year. The polling agency surveyed 1,003 adults nationwide for three days from Tuesday. The result has a sampling error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

Forty-four percent of respondents voiced negative opinions on Moon’s state management. The President’s policy on economy and public livelihood topped the list of reasons for the negative evaluation.

Starting this year, Moon has gone all-out to improve inter-Korean relations by holding three summits with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. But the Moon administration has put relatively less focus on improving weakening key economic indices.

According to Asian Development Bank data Wednesday, South Korea is expected to post a 2.7 percent growth rate this year, down from 3.1 percent last year.