[Exclusive] Ahn's Key Proposal Passed Over Again... No 'Chief of Science Education' Position to Be Created

Greater Emphasis on Slimming Down the Presidential Office Structure... Exploring Alternative Approaches for 4th Industrial Revolution Development

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is entering the office of the Presidential Transition Committee in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 26th. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] Among the senior secretaries in the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's presidential office, the position of Senior Secretary for Science Education will be excluded. The Senior Secretary for Science Education was a matter that Ahn Cheol-soo, the chairman of the Presidential Transition Committee, earnestly requested to President-elect Yoon, drawing attention, but it has been decided not to create the position. This follows President-elect Yoon's pledge to streamline the presidential office, and it is expected to become another variable in the relationship between Chairman Ahn and President-elect Yoon. The transition team plans to announce the presidential office organization and appointments early next week.

According to the Presidential Transition Committee (PTC) on the 27th, the 'Senior Secretary for Science Education' proposed by Chairman Ahn is unlikely to be included in the presidential office organization. A key official from the PTC said, "The President-elect has a strong interest in the 4th Industrial Revolution, but plans not to create the Senior Secretary for Science Education position," adding, "Instead, they will explore the development direction of the 4th Industrial Revolution through other means."

This decision was made because President-elect Yoon and his aides judged that it did not align with the presidential office's streamlining policy. It also reflects internal opinions that reforms in related ministries such as the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Education should take priority, solidifying the existing five senior secretary system without changes. Accordingly, the new presidential office organization is tentatively confirmed to be reorganized into '2 offices (Secretariat and Security Office) and 5 senior secretaries (Economy, Society, Political Affairs, Public Relations, and Civil Society).' Currently, President-elect Yoon is in the process of selecting the final suitable candidates for this system, which may be announced as early as this weekend.

Discussions on the new government's presidential office appointments and organizational reform are taking longer than expected. Although initially expected to be announced last weekend, deliberations on 'streamlining' and controversies surrounding key ministerial candidates have deepened President-elect Yoon's concerns about selecting presidential office aides.

The size of the presidential office has also not been finalized. On this day, spokesperson Bae Hyun-jin for the President-elect stated, "We are not filling positions based on a fixed percentage quota," distancing from reports that the presidential office size has been finalized at about 150 people, roughly one-third the size of previous Blue House organizations. A PTC official said, "Nothing has been finalized yet, including the establishment of the (Senior Secretary for Science Education) position, but above all, streamlining, which is President-elect Yoon's pledge, is the core of the organizational reform," adding, "With the schedule for the announcement of national tasks and the dissolution of the transition committee next week, the outline will be revealed by this weekend at the latest."