Plant President Demoted... Reform and Cabinet Reshuffle Led by Yoon at a Standstill

Yoon's 'Step Back from Second Term'... Loss of Presidential Office Leadership
Driving Force Lost for Various Tasks Including Medical Reform
Advisers Also Hold Back... Preparing for Prosecutor Investigation

On the afternoon of the 7th, the "Treason Yoon Seok-yeol Resignation! Realization of People's Sovereignty! Great Social Reform! Nationwide Candlelight March" is taking place in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News.

As President Yoon Suk-yeol has effectively become a 'figurehead president,' various reform and cabinet reshuffle agendas previously driven by the presidential office have come to a near standstill. Opposition parties, including the Democratic Party of Korea, are fully focused on impeaching President Yoon, and with the impeachment crisis severely damaging the leadership of the government and ruling party, it is becoming increasingly difficult to manage state affairs.

According to the presidential office and political circles on the 9th, President Yoon has remained silent since his national address on the 7th. The weekly Chief Secretary meeting chaired by the president, usually held every Monday, and the regular meetings with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo have also been canceled. Since President Yoon declared his retreat to the sidelines and Prime Minister Han and the ruling party took responsibility for state affairs, these meetings have lost their significance.

Consequently, the tasks previously led by the presidential office are likely to be stranded immediately. Medical reform is a prime example. A ruling party official said, "Medical reform, which has faced strong opposition from the medical community, has been pushed this far by the president's will," and predicted that it would be difficult to advance amid President Yoon’s impeachment crisis. In particular, after President Yoon declared martial law, the martial law proclamation included content about punishing non-returning resident doctors, which further weakened the negotiating power with the medical community.

More organizations are withdrawing from the Presidential Medical Reform Special Committee (의개특위). The Korean Medical Association stated, "We cannot have any dialogue with the government unless those who drafted the proclamation are found and punished," and the National Emergency Committee of Medical School Professors also declared in a statement the day before, "The medical and educational corruption that began with President Yoon must be reversed to the state before his election."

Economic and livelihood policies are also inevitably impacted. Initially, the presidential office was reviewing measures to address polarization and support the semiconductor and shipbuilding industries, aiming to announce them early next year, but achieving results now seems unlikely. The four major reforms?labor, pension, education, and medical care?key tasks of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, as well as efforts to restore the nuclear power ecosystem, drill deep-sea gas fields in the East Sea, and revitalize small and medium-sized enterprises, are expected to lose momentum.

On the afternoon of the 7th, participants are urging the vote on the impeachment motion at the "Treason Yoon Seok-yeol Resignation! Realization of People's Sovereignty! Great Social Reform! Nationwide Candlelight March" held in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

The cabinet reshuffle that the presidential office was pursuing is also effectively at a standstill. Since President Yoon has declared his retreat to the sidelines and entrusted state affairs to the party and government, it is difficult for him to exercise personnel authority. The acceptance of the resignation of Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min just the day before sparked significant backlash both inside and outside the political sphere. If President Yoon exercises further personnel authority, there is a high possibility that the impeachment sentiment will expand alongside controversies that his retreat to the sidelines was insincere.

The presidential office staff remain on emergency standby but are assessed to have limited roles going forward. Senior officials, including the Chief of Staff, directors, and chiefs, have expressed deep remorse for failing to properly assist the president and have collectively offered their resignations. Many public officials also view President Yoon’s declaration of martial law as inappropriate, so even if they retain their positions, it will be difficult for Yongsan to demonstrate leadership.

In fact, the presidential office has recently stopped issuing press releases on state affairs or current issues. This contrasts with the period after the halfway point of the term when multiple materials and statements were released daily to produce concrete results. Rather, since the prosecution has registered President Yoon as a suspect on charges of rebellion and is investigating him, the aides are also cautious. Chief of Staff Jeong Jin-seok and some aides have even rejoined Telegram, showing signs of preparing for the investigation.

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