The appointment of the presidential office's secretary for growth economy (formerly secretary for economy and finance), who coordinates economic policy for the entire country, is being pushed into the new year. In past administrations, the senior secretary post in the Office of the Senior Secretary for Economic Growth was always filled as the top priority, but in the Lee Jae-myung administration it has remained vacant even more than six months after the launch of the government.
According to political and government sources on the 29th, the appointment of the secretary for growth economy has recently stalled. A political source said, "Until not long ago, there was even talk that a university professor who made the final shortlist had sat for an interview, but in the end the person reportedly did not clear the final hurdle," adding, "Since then, talk of the appointment has gone completely quiet."
The secretary for growth economy supports Ha Jun-kyung, the senior secretary for economic growth, and oversees the policies of various economic ministries. It can be seen as the compass for the Lee Jae-myung administration's economic policy. The Office of the Senior Secretary for Economic Growth in the presidential office has six secretary posts—growth economy, industrial policy, land and transport, agriculture and livestock, small and venture businesses, and maritime and fisheries—with the growth economy secretary being the senior position among them.
Because the Lee Jae-myung administration launched without a transition committee, there was little comment early on about the delay in appointing the secretary for growth economy. But as other secretary posts in the presidential office have all been filled while the post overseeing economic policy remains vacant, various murmurs are growing.
In particular, in political circles, the interpretation gaining traction is that mainstream Democrats' distrust of the Ministry of Economy and Finance is the reason. Since the days when the position was called secretary for economy and finance, the post has traditionally been filled by officials from the Ministry of Economy and Finance. In the early days of the Lee Jae-myung administration, several figures from the Ministry of Economy and Finance were floated for the growth economy secretary. But those ministry figures who were seen as strong contenders reportedly either remained only in the rumor mill or failed to pass interviews.
A former high-ranking official from an economic ministry said, "There was even talk in government circles that Koo Yun-cheol, the Minister of Economy and Finance and deputy prime minister for the economy, pleaded with Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik to appoint someone from the ministry," adding, "We naturally thought it was a post the ministry should take, but in the presidential office and the Democratic Party the mood is to look for the right person with everyone except the ministry."
The ruling party's dissatisfaction and distrust toward the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MOEF) runs deep. On top of progressive Democratic figures' distrust of the so-called "Mofia," the elite group of former Finance Ministry technocrats, there has recently been added the complaint that the ministry toyed with the National Assembly through massive tax revenue shortfalls over the past few years. In fact, the Ministry of Economy and Finance posted tax revenue shortfalls totaling 86 trillion won over two years, 2023 and 2024, under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration.
A Democratic Party lawmaker said, "There are no public officials less trustworthy than those at the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MOEF)," adding, "We all remember how, under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, the ministry deceived the National Assembly twice in an organized manner."
The Lee Jae-myung administration's move to split the Ministry of Economy and Finance into the Ministry of Finance and Economy and the Ministry of Planning and Budget through a government reorganization at the very outset was also part of an effort to curb the ministry's power. In this context, the view is that it would be unacceptable to seat a former ministry official in the post overseeing economic policy.
A political source said, "The key to economic policy is in the hands of Policy Chief Kim Yong-beom rather than Senior Secretary Ha Jun-kyung, and with major economic issues such as South Korea–U.S. trade negotiations being led by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy rather than the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MOEF), some are even asking whether the secretary for growth economy is necessary," adding, "Throughout the Lee Jae-myung administration, there may be far fewer posts for former ministry officials to take."