Governor of Eubuk 5 Provinces with a Monthly Salary of 12 Million Won... "Should Switch to Unpaid Honorary Position"

Labor Costs Increased but Event Held '0 Times'
About 1,000 People Including Honorary Chairman and County Governor

This year, the Ibook 5 Provinces Committee, which has a budget in the 10 billion KRW range, has been confirmed to have increased only personnel expenses over the past nine years, sparking controversy. The total annual salary of the five governors of the Ibook 5 Provinces Committee, appointed by the president without any special qualifications or procedures, amounts to about 800 million KRW. Despite receiving treatment equivalent to vice-ministerial level, they face criticism for being ineffective with no significant work achievements.

Asia Economy DB

On the 2nd, Yoon Hye-in, a member of the Basic Income Party, analyzed data submitted by the Ibook 5 Provinces Committee and found that out of the 81.31 billion KRW budget spent by the committee from 2015 to 2023 over the past nine years, 82.2% (68.88 billion KRW) was spent on operating expenses (40.8%) and personnel expenses (41.4%).

The Ibook 5 Provinces Committee is a committee under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety established to manage exile local governments of North Korean regions such as Hwanghae Province, South Pyongan Province, North Pyongan Province, South Hamgyong Province, and North Hamgyong Province, as part of South Korea's sovereignty claim over North Korean territory.

The total budget has steadily increased from 8.371 billion KRW in 2015 to 10.082 billion KRW in 2023. While operating expenses decreased by about 100 million KRW compared to 2015, personnel expenses significantly increased to about 1.691 billion KRW. In fact, most of the budget increase is due to the rise in personnel expenses.

In contrast, during the same period, the budget related to the committee’s core tasks was either not allocated or reduced. The "Special Measures Act on the Ibook 5 Provinces, etc." defines the committee’s responsibilities as including research on various policies to be implemented upon recovery of the Ibook 5 Provinces, support for organizations related to Ibook residents, development of local culture in the Ibook 5 Provinces, and support for the stabilization of Ibook residents' lives and exchange projects.

However, the committee did not spend a single won on research service fees necessary for policy development (0.0%), and private transfers to support organizations related to the Ibook 5 Provinces decreased from 10.8% (910 million KRW) in 2015 to 7.5% (758 million KRW) in 2023.

The excessive personnel expenses of the Ibook 5 Provinces Committee are primarily attributed to the over-appointment of honorary positions such as the Ibook 5 Province governors and nearly 1,000 honorary mayors, county heads, and town chiefs, who have little practical connection to actual administrative execution, and the corresponding salary payments.

The Ibook 5 Province governors receive special treatment equivalent to vice-ministerial level. This year, the total annual salary of the five governors amounts to 742.3896 million KRW, with a monthly salary per person reaching 12.37316 million KRW.

However, compared to vice ministers of central government departments, they handle an extremely small workload. From 2015 to this year, the committee held only 100 meetings over nine years, failing to convene even once a month.

There are just over 1,000 honorary mayors and county heads... It is unknown what duties they perform in normal times

A panoramic view of the Five Provinces of North Korea Office.
[Photo by the Five Provinces of North Korea Committee website capture]

The Ibook 5 Provinces Committee appoints honorary mayors, honorary county heads, honorary town chiefs, honorary township chiefs, and honorary neighborhood chiefs by province and pays them monthly allowances.

The number of honorary mayors and county heads is 67 in total: 14 in Hwanghae Province, 11 in South Pyongan Province, 12 in North Pyongan Province, 13 in South Hamgyong Province, 11 in North Hamgyong Province, and 6 in the unliberated Gyeonggi and Gangwon Provinces. The number of honorary town, township, and neighborhood chiefs totals 912: 240 in Hwanghae Province, 161 in South Pyongan Province, 184 in North Pyongan Province, 153 in South Hamgyong Province, 93 in North Hamgyong Province, and 81 in the unliberated Gyeonggi and Gangwon Provinces.

This year, the monthly allowance is 370,000 KRW for honorary mayors and county heads, and 140,000 KRW for honorary town, township, and neighborhood chiefs, totaling 152.47 million KRW monthly. The annual tax expenditure reaches 1.82964 billion KRW. These honorary positions have a three-year term with one possible renewal, but what duties they perform in normal times is less known than those of the Ibook 5 Province governors.

Nevertheless, the appointment and commissioning process of the Ibook 5 Province governors and others is nearly a blind spot. The "Ibook 5 Provinces Act" only stipulates that "the governors shall be appointed by the president upon recommendation by the Minister of the Interior and Safety through the Prime Minister, and shall be political positions," but there are no specific regulations regarding qualifications or appointment procedures for the governors. Among the five governors appointed by President Yoon Seok-yeol, only Jo Myung-cheol, former member of the National Assembly and governor of South Pyongan Province, and Ki Deok-young, a former military officer and governor of Hwanghae Province, have public service experience.

Nearly 1,000 honorary mayors, county heads, and town, township, and neighborhood chiefs are appointed by the president and receive monthly allowances from the national budget, but there is no delegated regulation regarding honorary appointments in current law.

Representative Yoon criticized, "While the constitutional necessity of the Ibook 5 Provinces Committee is recognized, wasting national budget by granting vice-ministerial treatment without actual work and over-appointing honorary positions does not meet the public’s expectations or the constitutional intent."

He also argued that the committee should break away from the practice commonly called a "sweet job." Representative Yoon stated, "We should consider converting the Ibook 5 Province governors to unpaid honorary positions while strengthening the committee’s secretariat to reorganize it into a practical, work-focused organization. The honorary appointment regulations for mayors and county heads, which are carried out without legal delegation, should be immediately abolished, and overlapping tasks with the Ministry of Unification should be coordinated to clearly establish the committee’s jurisdiction."