Moon replaces secretary for personnel affairs

This combination of photos show new National Tax Service chief Kim Hyun-jun, left, Government Legislation Minister Kim Hyeong-yeon, center, and senior presidential secretary for personnel affairs Kim Oe-sook, Tuesday. Yonhap

By Kim Yoo-chul

President Moon Jae-in has replaced senior presidential secretary for personnel affairs Cho Hyun-ok. The replacement came 746 days after the outgoing secretary Cho was named for the post.

“I've tried my best, but I felt sorry to the public that earlier personnel verification for Cabinet members failed to meet expectations,” Cho told reporters in a briefing at Cheong Wa Dae.

Cho was one of the targets of opposition parties, along with senior presidential secretary for civil affairs Cho Kuk, as they were asked to step down from their positions over lax personnel verification for Cabinet members and failure to maintain discipline within the presidential office.

Despite some moral issues that were found during a screening led by the two Chos, President Moon pushed through the nominations of some new Cabinet members recently, without adopting the confirmation hearing reports on them from the National Assembly. Presidential chief of staff Noh Young-min apologized over the controversy.

“I am sure the new presidential secretary for personnel affairs will do a much better job,” she said. The outgoing Cho will be replaced by Kim Oe-sook, Cheong Wa Dae said.

As President Moon has entered his third year in office, he named Kim Hyun-jun as the chief of the National Tax Service, while Kim Hyeong-yeon has been named as minister of government legislation.