The Presidential Office Takes Shape... Slimming Down the Organization and Relinquishing Autocratic Powers

If the Presidential Office Recommends Personnel, the Ministry of Justice and Police Conduct Personnel Verification
Establishment of Public-Private Joint Committees by Field
Commitment to Implement Responsible Prime Minister and Responsible Ministers

[Asia Economy reporters Ki-min Lee and Hyun-ji Kwon] Following President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol's announcement to abolish the Office of the Senior Presidential Secretary for Civil Affairs, and his statement that the presidential office will retain only the personnel recommendation function, the outline of the Blue House reorganization plan is emerging. As promised during the presidential campaign, President-elect Yoon is expected to abolish the Senior Secretary system, establish a secretariat and sector-specific joint public-private committees to streamline the organization, and relinquish his autocratic powers.

On the 15th, spokesperson Kim Eun-hye of the President-elect’s office stated at a briefing at the People Power Party headquarters in Yeouido, "Our presidential office will retain only the personnel recommendation function, and the verification of high-ranking public officials subject to screening, as well as cabinet members and necessary public officials subject to hearings, will be conducted by the Ministry of Justice and the police based on mutual checks and balances."

The personnel verification of public office candidates, which had been handled by the Senior Presidential Secretary for Civil Affairs, has often involved abuses of power such as invasive background checks and unauthorized investigations, leading to human rights violations and significant harm. For this reason, President-elect Yoon’s team is reportedly considering adopting a U.S.-style model led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Spokesperson Kim emphasized, "There is no precedent for the President-elect’s office to conduct unnecessary investigations," and reiterated, "The investigative function will be thoroughly excluded from the presidential office."

President-elect Yoon plans to reactivate the Special Inspector General system. This aims to prevent abuse of power by the Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs while strictly monitoring misconduct by the president and senior Blue House officials through the Special Inspector General. The Special Inspector General is a position responsible for investigating misconduct by the president, the president’s spouse and relatives within the fourth degree, and senior Blue House officials, and refers cases to the Prosecutor General. The law was enacted during the Park Geun-hye administration in 2014, and Special Inspector Lee Seok-soo was active, but no Special Inspector has been appointed during the Moon Jae-in administration.

In particular, President-elect Yoon perceives the Blue House as a miniature palace of the royal era. Accordingly, he has pledged to rename the Blue House as the Presidential Office and to operate state affairs in a new way in a new space, opening the era of the Gwanghwamun presidency. However, President-elect Yoon is considering relocating the current Blue House office to the Seoul Gwanghwamun Government Complex and designating the Prime Minister’s official residence as the presidential residence, while also considering moving the office to the Ministry of National Defense building in Yongsan. This consideration appears to take into account concerns that relocating the presidential office to the high-rise Gwanghwamun Government Complex could pose practical security challenges.

President-elect Yoon is also expected to soon decide and announce the streamlining of the Blue House organization. Currently, under President Moon Jae-in, the Blue House has a Chief of Staff, Director of Policy, and Director of National Security, with eight senior secretaries under the secretariat and policy office, and two deputy directors under the National Security Office. The Blue House secretariat alone has 443 staff members. President-elect Yoon plans to downsize the bloated presidential office and reduce aides by about 30%, aiming to plan, coordinate, and promote cross-ministerial and national issues. Accordingly, he intends to abolish the senior secretary system and establish a secretariat and sector-specific joint public-private committees to gather policy demands from various sectors including public officials, professors, and the media. Furthermore, to actively guarantee the autonomy of each ministry, he plans to implement a responsible prime minister and responsible minister system to empower the cabinet. During the presidential campaign, President-elect Yoon emphasized, "I will operate the government faithfully according to the constitutional spirit of a presidential system with elements of a parliamentary system," and stated, "I will grant full authority to each minister while introducing a decentralized responsible minister system to ensure clear accountability for results."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.