Yoo Si-min Questions Lee Hyehoon: "People Who Yell at Subordinates Are Not Good at Their Jobs"

Yoo Si-min Evaluates Lee Hyehoon, Minister of Planning and Budget Nominee
"If It Were Me, I Wouldn't Call Lee Hyehoon... Preferences Can't Be Criticized"
"A Minister Must Enable Civil Servants to Work... Yelling Won't Work"

Former Roh Moo-hyun Foundation Chairman Yoo Si-min evaluated Lee Hyehoon, the nominee for Minister of Planning and Budget, as "a question mark regarding whether she can do the job well," adding, "People who shout at their subordinates are usually not good at their work." On January 2, during an interview for the 'Jung Junhee's Perspective' segment on the YouTube channel 'Kim Eo-jun's Humility Is Hard News Factory,' Yoo assessed Lee's nomination based on three criteria: personal preference, moral standards, and rationality of purpose.

Former Roh Moo-hyun Foundation Chairman Yoo Si-min evaluated Lee Hye-hoon, the nominee for Minister of Planning and Budget, as "a question mark regarding whether she can do the job well." Photo by The Asia Business Daily DB

Yoo said, "If you were Lee Hyehoon, would you accept the call if the President called you? If I were Lee Hyehoon, I would not accept. For example, if Yoon Suk-yeol asked me to come and serve as Minister of Health and Welfare, I would refuse. If I were the President, would I call Lee Hyehoon? I would not." However, he defined this as a "matter of personal preference," stating, "Preferences differ from person to person, so it cannot be criticized on that basis."

He continued, "The People Power Party expelled her from the party and calls her a traitor. Supporters of the ruling party say, 'How can you nominate someone who, until recently, defended Yoon Suk-yeol? Do you think so little of the supporters? Are there no competent people in our camp?' This is the political and moral standard." He added, "Such evaluations are valid to discuss. Both the nominee and the President must be prepared to face them."

He also said, "Is Lee Hyehoon the right person for the job? That should be the focus of criticism. But when it comes to whether she can do the job well, I have a question mark." He continued, "Looking beyond routine work at the Ministry of Planning and Budget, considering special tasks and presidential projects, generally speaking, people who shout at their subordinates are not good at their work."

He further commented, "During the Roh Moo-hyun administration, the Ministry of Personnel Management created a manual for ministers. It states that some things should never be done: not leaving work on time, making phone calls before working hours, and getting angry at subordinates. These are basic principles, and violating them is unacceptable."

Yoo concluded, "The job of a minister is to enable public officials to work. Someone who screams at an intern-of course, behavior might change after becoming a minister, but is that really possible?" He added, "As for whether selecting Lee Hyehoon was a rational choice, I don't have enough data to say yes or no, so I remain unconvinced and will wait for the confirmation hearing."

Lee Hyehoon, nominee for Minister of Planning and Budget. Photo by Jinhyung Kang

Previously, TV Chosun released an audio recording on December 31 in which Lee Hyehoon, during her time as a lawmaker, was heard shouting and verbally abusing an intern. According to the transcript, in 2017, Lee reprimanded the intern for failing to report a news article mentioning her name, saying, "How many times do I have to tell you for you to understand? Do you not understand Korean? Can your brain comprehend this? Is your IQ in the single digits?" She also said, "I really wish I could kill you," and "Do you just blurt out whatever you want with that mouth of yours?" In response, Lee's camp stated, "We sincerely apologize and deeply reflect on the fact that the staff member was deeply hurt during the work process."

Previously, there were also calls from the ruling party for Lee to withdraw her nomination. Jang Cheolmin, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party of Korea, wrote on social media on January 1, "Anyone who can speak to another person in such a manner should not hold any public office."