Acting President Lee: "Everyone Must Manage State Affairs with the Mindset of an Acting President"

Presiding Over the First Cabinet Meeting on the 2nd

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Lee Jooho, who is serving as Acting President, presided over a Cabinet meeting for the first time and told Cabinet members, "Everyone must approach their duties with the mindset of an acting president and devote their utmost efforts to managing state affairs during the remaining 30 days."

At a special Cabinet meeting held at 10:30 a.m. on May 2 at the Government Complex Seoul, Acting President Lee stated, "The ministers and I must fear only the judgment of the people and history, and fulfill the final responsibilities entrusted to us," expressing his resolve.

Yonhap News

Acting President Lee said, "I feel a tremendous sense of responsibility in assuming the heavy duty of acting president," and emphasized, "Above all, the Cabinet and I must steadfastly safeguard 'national security' and 'public safety' in accordance with our constitutional duties, and provide thorough support to ensure that every stage of the presidential election process is managed transparently and without any gaps."

He also highlighted key national interests, including: full-scale negotiations on navigation with the United States; revitalizing livelihoods and the economy; and responding to the global technological hegemony competition in semiconductors and artificial intelligence (AI). He stressed, "Not a single one of these tasks should be neglected."

Addressing the ministers, he said, "As you have done so far, I ask that each ministry, led by its minister, complete all pending issues under its jurisdiction with a strong sense of duty and responsibility until the very end. For major state affairs such as trade issues, public safety, and revitalizing livelihoods and the economy, I urge you to break down silos between ministries and unite your efforts solely from the perspective of the people and their livelihoods."

He further called on public officials, saying, "With the presidential election approaching, the civil service must maintain strict political neutrality. I ask that all public servants never display any signs of disorder by taking advantage of this period of political transition, and instead devote themselves to their duties with the mindset of a true public servant serving the people."

In addition, Acting President Lee explained the supplementary budget bill that passed the National Assembly plenary session on May 1. The final supplementary budget was set at 13.8 trillion won, an increase of 1.6 trillion won over the government's original proposal. During the National Assembly's review process, the following items were added: a three-month extension of the digital Onnuri refund event limited to special disaster areas; the creation of joint facilities for commercial districts in special disaster areas; and expanded support for renting high-performance graphics processing units (GPUs).

He stated, "For this supplementary budget, speed is of the essence above all else," and added, "I ask that every ministry do its utmost to ensure that the supplementary budget reaches those in urgent need as quickly as possible."