Ministry of the Interior and Safety Transitions to Deputy Minister Acting System... Temporary Confusion Inevitable

Suspension of Sangmin Lee's Official Authority
Unprecedented Situation, Ongoing Confusion

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] The Ministry of the Interior and Safety will switch to a deputy minister acting system on the 8th following the passage of Minister Lee Sang-min's impeachment motion in the National Assembly. However, a work vacuum at the Ministry of the Interior and Safety is inevitable.

Minister of the Interior and Safety Sang-min Lee. Photo by Yonhap News

On the same day, the National Assembly held a secret ballot on the impeachment motion against Minister Lee in the plenary session, with 179 votes in favor, 109 against, and 5 invalid votes out of a total of 293 votes, passing the motion and sending it to the Constitutional Court.

The moment the impeachment resolution is delivered to the Constitutional Court, Minister Lee's official authority is suspended. Additionally, the appointing authority, the President, cannot accept Minister Lee's resignation letter nor can he dismiss him. The duties are expected to be taken over in an acting capacity by Deputy Minister Han Chang-seop.

The Constitutional Court will rule on Minister Lee's impeachment within 180 days (6 months) from the date the impeachment resolution is delivered. If six or more of the nine justices agree, the impeachment will be confirmed.

This is the first case in constitutional history of a sitting minister being impeached by the National Assembly. Previously, impeachment motions were filed against former Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae, former Deputy Prime Minister for Economy Hong Nam-ki, and former Minister of Public Administration and Security (now Ministry of the Interior and Safety) Jeong Jong-seop during the 20th and 21st National Assemblies, but these were either rejected or discarded after failing to be voted on within 72 hours following the plenary session report.

As Minister Lee's impeachment motion moves to the Constitutional Court, confusion within the Ministry of the Interior and Safety is expected to continue for the time being. There is no precedent for a minister's suspension due to National Assembly impeachment, nor are there clear regulations regarding such a situation.

According to the Government Organization Act, if the minister's duties are suspended following the passage of the impeachment motion, the deputy minister acts on behalf of the minister. However, since Minister Lee is only excluded from his duties and retains his status and authority, concerns have been raised about the ambiguity of the deputy minister's scope of acting authority. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety is consulting with the Ministry of Government Legislation and the Ministry of Personnel Management regarding related regulations.

Some speculate that the Presidential Office might appoint a 'powerful deputy minister' as Minister Lee's acting replacement. This would involve appointing a legal professional from among the President's key aides as the deputy minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.

This is the second time the Ministry of the Interior and Safety has operated under a deputy minister acting system. In 2010, Minister Lee Dal-gon resigned to run in the nationwide local elections. Consequently, First Deputy Minister Jeong Chang-seop acted as minister for about a month until the inauguration of his successor, Minister Maeng Hyung-gyu.

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