Government ministries are contradicting one another and reversing their positions on urgent policy issues, deepening public confusion.
Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan told the National Assembly on the 12th that the government was "discussing various forms, including flexible working-hour arrangements," when asked about granting exemptions from the 52-hour workweek cap for three mega projects. Employment and Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon, however, again voiced a differing view the same day, saying the matter "should be approached with caution." Earlier, the labor ministry had reported a plan to introduce such exemptions to the ruling party, only to change its stance after running into opposition from labor groups.
Ministries have also been out of step over follow-up measures to the revised Criminal Procedure Act, which abolished prosecutors' powers to conduct direct and supplementary investigations. Interior and Safety Minister Yoon Ho-jung recently explained that prosecutors could offer advice and review or request warrants at a joint investigation headquarters without conducting direct investigations, but Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho pushed back, saying it "creates problems with the admissibility of evidence." In the security field, Unification Minister Chung Dong-young reported his vision for peaceful coexistence and development on the Korean Peninsula to President Lee Jae-myung earlier this month, only to be checked by Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, who called it "an approach that has not yet been coordinated."
President Lee must sort out the repeated clashes among ministries so that they do not spill over into policy confusion, and must manage the government's messaging with precision. The president has previously explained that "closed-door administration" is when internal opinions among ministries are all coordinated first, then only a finalized position is released to the public and pushed through. Vigorous internal debate among ministries is desirable. But when important national policies visibly clash in public, it can cause great confusion for markets, businesses and the public. A considerable number of citizens also wonder whether the government and ruling party have effectively predetermined their policy direction and are holding public hearings and open debates only as a formality. If the government truly intends to move away from closed-door administration, it should first listen to the public and experts and deliberate with both the ruling and opposition parties. Building on public consensus gathered in this way, ministries should then coordinate internally and put forward orderly policies — a more desirable way of governing.
