[Gwanga in] "What should we do..." Bureaucracy paralyzed by martial law shock and deadlock

Busy with New Year's work reports
This year, couldn't even schedule anything

On the morning of the 9th, the first weekday after the impeachment motion against President Yoon Seok-yeol was dismissed due to a failed vote, the Sejong government offices, where major economic ministries such as the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and Ministry of Employment and Labor are located, were filled with empty seats. On that day, senior officials including ministers, vice ministers, and bureau chiefs of major economic ministries commuted to the Seoul Government Complex instead of Sejong to manage the aftermath of the martial law shockwave. Since the declaration and lifting of martial law on the 4th, the Sejong government offices have been experiencing a deadlock phase beyond a lame duck (power leakage), with days without supervisors and complete idleness continuing.

Yonhap News

Every year around this time, each ministry is busy planning next year’s tasks and preparing for the presidential work report at the beginning of the year, but this year they have not even been able to set a schedule. A policy officer from an economic ministry said, "We haven’t even started talking about the New Year’s work report yet," describing the atmosphere. This is because the final reporting line, including the Presidential Office’s Chief of Policy and Economic Secretary?key aides in Yongsan?have resigned, and there has been no schedule notification, resulting in a 'functional paralysis' state. The communication line connecting the ruling party, government, and Yongsan has also been severed. Not only ministers and vice ministers who commute to the Seoul Government Complex to manage the martial law aftermath, but also bureau chiefs have disappeared from issuing instructions, and without orders from the Presidential Office or the party, civil servants have stopped working.

With momentum lost both externally and internally, the driving force behind work is declining. It is a time to redraw the new framework for trade policy for the next four years ahead of the launch of the Trump administration’s second term next month, but leadership is absent and the situation is unclear. A mid-level official said, "Central government officials are people who work for the country under the guidance of the administrative head, the president," adding, "It is impossible to work as usual when the authority of the president at the top of the command line and the national dignity of the Republic of Korea have both collapsed." The Korean Government Employees’ Union (KGEU) has launched a leave-of-absence protest demanding 'Yoon Seok-yeol’s impeachment' and 'the dissolution of the People Power Party.' On the 9th, at a candlelight rally in Dodam-dong, a representative central commercial district of Sejong City, the slogan 'Impeach Yoon Seok-yeol' erupted, further unsettling the minds of civil servants.

As the impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk-yeol failed to pass due to a lack of quorum caused by the collective absence of People Power Party lawmakers from the vote, citizens are urging President Yoon's impeachment in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 9th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

The Prime Minister and ministers of each ministry have tried to restore order, but their efforts have not taken hold. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and ministers urged, "Do not be shaken and do your best in your assigned duties," attempting to enforce discipline. At an expanded senior officials meeting held the previous day, Choi Sang-mok, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, said, "Public officials must faithfully carry out their duties regardless of the situation," and "During difficult times, the Ministry of Economy and Finance must hold the center," but these words have been empty. A senior official said, "The key ministers of economic ministries attended the Cabinet meeting that pre-reviewed the martial law, and since they could be subject to investigation at any time, how can ministers focus on their work when they do not know what will happen to their own fate tomorrow?"

The Ministry of Economy and Finance, Bank of Korea, Financial Services Commission, and Financial Supervisory Service have announced that they will hold daily macroeconomic and financial issue meetings until the financial and foreign exchange markets, shaken by political risks, stabilize. Some ministries and departments have convened meetings even on weekends, but ministers have also lost motivation. After spending weekends like weekdays managing the aftermath of the martial law shockwave, ministers, vice ministers, and bureau chiefs of each ministry held only half-day meetings again on this day. The economic ministers’ meeting, which was urgently canceled due to President Yoon’s martial law declaration, was held again after one day and seemed to be returning to the front lines, but it was only at the level of organizing already started tasks. An official from an economic ministry said, "The martial law incident triggered by President Yoon has spread like wildfire, causing great confusion in the public service," and "The sense of emptiness and despair in this deadlock phase is greater than ever."