'Impeachment Dismissed' Lee Sang-min Returns, Gains Momentum for Ministry of the Interior and Safety Tasks

Disaster Safety Management, Focus on Flood Damage Recovery
Re-promotion of Key Tasks Such as Regional Balance Expected
'5-Month Ministry of the Interior Vacancy' to Be Resolved

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min returned to work after five months following the Constitutional Court's dismissal of the National Assembly's impeachment motion. Amid severe heavy rain damage, he is expected to focus immediately on recovery efforts as the head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters. Additionally, he is anticipated to resume pushing forward key government tasks related to regional balance and the Digital Platform Government.

According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety on the 25th, Minister Lee resumed his duties immediately after the Constitutional Court's dismissal ruling. This came 269 days after the Itaewon tragedy on October 29 and 167 days after the National Assembly passed the impeachment motion against him.

With the impeachment motion's approval having suspended his authority, Minister Lee's official powers have now been restored. Under civil servant service regulations, he can use government office spaces (in Sejong and Seoul) again. He will also be able to use official expenses such as business promotion funds related to his duties. He will resume using an official vehicle and receive assistance from his executive secretary.

As both the Minister of the Interior and Safety and the head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, Minister Lee is expected to prioritize flood recovery efforts immediately. In a statement following the ruling, he declared, "Above all, we will do our utmost to restore the lives of those affected by this heavy rain as quickly as possible," and pledged to "fundamentally change the disaster management system and response methods."

The formal constitutional court hearing for Lee Sang-min, Minister of the Interior and Safety, who was impeached amid controversy over the inadequate response to the Itaewon disaster, was held on the afternoon of the 9th at the Grand Bench of the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Minister Lee Sang-min is seated. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, the disaster safety control tower, was significantly affected by the minister's absence. Although Deputy Minister Han Chang-seop acted as the head of the headquarters, frequent requests for cooperation from ministries and local governments posed limitations. Since President Yoon Suk-yeol ordered during his weekly meeting with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on the 24th to "activate a task force among related ministries to completely reorganize the disaster response system," coordinated responses led by Minister Lee with related ministries are expected going forward.

Starting from the afternoon of the same day, Minister Lee visited the Jicheon area in Cheongyang County, Chungnam Province, which suffered heavy rain damage, to inspect recovery sites. After touring flood-damaged sites and farming areas, he planned to return to the Central Disaster and Safety Situation Room located at the Sejong Government Complex to continue his work.

He is also expected to return to meetings of relevant ministries, including the Cabinet meeting. Decisions on major tasks such as government organization personnel management, local autonomy, government innovation, and the Digital Platform Government had been delayed. In particular, he is expected to resume efforts on regional balance, one of the national agenda items. In his statement that day, Minister Lee mentioned, "I will devote all my efforts to opening an era of national balanced development and local autonomy." Previously, he had announced plans to promote the relocation of major domestic corporations and universities to local areas during President Yoon's term to support regional balanced development.

Next month, he is also expected to oversee national events hosted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, such as the 78th Liberation Day celebration and the Ulleungdo Island Day ceremony. Amid North Korea's continuous provocations, the Eulji Exercise, an integrated civil-military-government drill, is also scheduled. A ministry official explained, "Major issues such as realizing the local era, the Digital Platform Government, and local finances are key tasks the minister must focus on," adding, "These are reflected in his statement."

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