South Korea president to replace some Cabinet members
South Korea’s president is seeking to replace the prime minister as well as some top aides and Cabinet members this week, his office said Sunday, ahead of October’s parliamentary by-elections.
A new lineup for President Lee Myung-bak’s top advisers will be announced on Monday, and the nominees for a new prime minister and other government ministers later this week, Lee’s spokesman Lee Dong-kwan said in a statement.
Parliament will then vote on the president’s nominees for prime minister. It will also carry out hearings on nominees for other Cabinet posts but cannot reject their appointments.
The spokesman said the shake-up was aimed at getting advisers to assist Lee more effectively and “reshaping the look” of the Cabinet as the leader nears the halfway point of his five-year term that began in early 2008.
Lee has been called by ruling party members and conservative newspapers to shake up his Cabinet and restore public confidence since his party failed to win any of five parliamentary seats in April by-elections, amid economic difficulties and high tension with North Korea _ both of which have since eased.
Three other parliamentary by-elections are scheduled for October.
Lee’s office didn’t say who was being considered for Cabinet positions except that three to four people, including a woman, have been considered as candidates to replace Prime Minister Han Seung-soo.
The prime minister is the second-highest official in South Korea, but it is largely a ceremonial role.
Yonhap news agency, however, reported Sunday that Lee was considering replacing up to nine Cabinet members including his defense, justice and labor ministers.
Topics: cabinet members, Governance, October parliamentary elections, politics, president, society, South Korea
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