After Just One Month Since Yoon Administration's Inauguration, Rapid Personnel Moves... All Eyes on the Commissioner of the National Police Agency

Yoon Hee-geun Likely to Be Promoted as Deputy Commissioner of Police Agency
Internal Dissatisfaction Over Personnel Led by Ministry of the Interior and Safety and Ministry of Justice

(From left) Kim Kwang-ho, Commissioner of Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, Yoon Hee-geun, Nominee for Deputy Commissioner of National Police Agency / Provided by National Police Agency

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Less than a month after the new government took office, promotions and personnel appointments for Police Commissioner General have been made one after another, drawing all eyes in the police force to the 'Commissioner General of the National Police Agency.' It is widely expected that the selection process for the successor to Kim Chang-ryong, whose term ends next month, will accelerate.

According to the National Police Agency on the 8th, the personnel appointment candidates are proposed by the Minister of the Interior and Safety, pass through the Prime Minister, and are then appointed by the President the following day. Once these appointments are completed, the government is expected to proceed with the next steps for appointing the next Commissioner General of the National Police Agency. Under the current Police Act, the Commissioner General, who holds the rank of Police Commissioner General, is appointed from among Police Commissioner Generals. This personnel move is being analyzed inside and outside the police as a preliminary step to appointing the next Commissioner General. Professor Kim Do-woo of Yeungnam University’s Department of Police Administration said, "Usually, when a regime change occurs while agency heads still have remaining terms, the government follows a process of replacement through personnel changes. This Police Commissioner General personnel move can be seen as part of that process."

The appointment of the Commissioner General is expected as early as mid-month. Inside and outside the police, the competition is seen as a two-way race between Yoon Hee-geun, the nominee for Deputy Commissioner General of the National Police Agency, and Kim Kwang-ho, the nominee for Commissioner General of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, with slightly more weight given to Yoon. Yoon is regarded as a representative intelligence expert within the police, aligning with the new government’s policy to strengthen intelligence policing. Additionally, considering continuity of work, there is analysis that the newly appointed Deputy Commissioner General might directly succeed as Commissioner General rather than a metropolitan or provincial police chief, which supports this expectation.

However, there are various interpretations internally regarding the swift top-level personnel appointments. Some suggest that the government’s exercise of personnel authority aims to strengthen control over the police, whose power has grown following the adjustment of investigative authority and the passage of the so-called ‘Geomsu Wanbak’ (complete removal of prosecutorial investigative authority) law. Until now, the Commissioner General’s opinions have been reflected in Police Commissioner General appointments. However, regarding this personnel move, Commissioner General Kim said, "It is difficult to talk about specific details," effectively remaining silent.

Regarding the successor to the head of the National Investigation Headquarters of the National Police Agency, whose term is guaranteed until February next year, there is already speculation about an external candidate who is not from the police, which is interpreted in the same context. There are also talks that Park Chan-ho, the chief prosecutor of Gwangju District Prosecutors’ Office and a close aide to President Yoon Seok-yeol who tendered his resignation the day before, might be appointed as the next head of the National Investigation Headquarters. Furthermore, dissatisfaction and concerns continue regarding the fact that personnel from the Ministry of Justice and prosecution are being favored, that the Ministry of Justice is responsible for public official personnel verification, and that the Police Commissioner General is reportedly the first subject of such verification.

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