It is noteworthy whether Prime Minister Kim Bu-gyeom will exercise the right to propose to the first ministers of the Yun Seok-yeol government.
While the National Assembly personnel hearing procedure for Prime Minister Han Duk-soo has passed the statutory deadline, opinions are being raised whether Prime Minister Kim should first propose new ministers in order to minimize the administrative vacancy in the initial stage of the new government.
Initially, Yoon-elect's side was drawing up a scenario in which a candidate was appointed Prime Minister at the same time as the government was inaugurated to exercise the right to propose to candidates for the new cabinet.
However, as a result of the opposition's confrontation, the hearing of one candidate went limp, and some in the political circles even observed that the hearing procedure might not be completed before the government was launched.
The problem is that since the prime minister has the right to propose a minister, leaving the prime minister's seat vacant will delay the nomination process for new ministerial candidates, which will take a long time to form a new cabinet.
It is also said that the ministers belonging to the Democratic Party of the Moon Jae-in government agreed to resign the day before the new government was inaugurated.
If the request for new ministers is delayed, it means that the ministry has no choice but to leave the head of the department vacant.
In the worst case, government officials explain that there may be a state vacancy in which decisions on major policies cannot be made without meeting a quorum for open and decision-making at the State Council.
For this reason, there are voices in the political circles saying that even if the Yun Seok-Yeol government is inaugurated, it is necessary to consider a plan for Prime Minister Kim to perform his post as prime minister for a certain period of time and exercise his right to make a proposal.
It is also known that Prime Minister Kim was not negative about this.
An official from the Prime Minister's Office said in a media call today (27th), "Prime Minister Kim thinks that there should be no vacuum or setbacks in state affairs when the new government is inaugurated." There is a possibility of exercising it,” he said.
In this case, from the inauguration of the new government on May 10 to Friday, the 13th, as the 'maginot line', it is expected that the subject of the exercise of the right to propose will be limited to ministerial candidates whose personnel hearing procedures have been completed by an agreement between the ruling and opposition parties.
Exercising the right to recommend a candidate for whom the personnel hearing report has not been adopted due to differences of opinion between the ruling and opposition parties is a political burden even for Prime Minister Kim, who is a former member of the Democratic Party of Korea.
Of course, as a candidate's personnel hearing is scheduled for the 2nd or 3rd of next month, there is still a possibility that the approval process will be completed before the inauguration of the government.
In addition, if Choo Kyung-ho, the deputy prime minister of economy and minister of Strategy and Finance, is appointed in time for the inauguration of the government after a hearing on the 2nd of next month, he can exercise his right to make a proposal as acting prime minister.
In this case, there are also observations that the point in time when Choo is appointed will be the time when Prime Minister Kim resigns.
It is reported that Prime Minister Kim plans to move all of his luggage to his home in Mapo, Seoul by the 9th, the last day of the Moon Jae-in administration.
If the appointment of the new prime minister goes smoothly, he will leave the mission on the 9th and leave the mission.
Some even speculate that if one candidate fails, it could be 'Plan B' for Prime Minister Kim to remain in office for quite a while.
However, it is known that Prime Minister Kim is not considering such a retention rumor at all.
An official from Prime Minister Kim's side dismissed it, saying, "There is no possibility that he will remain in office."
Prior to that, Prime Minister Kim directly defined the rumor of retention as a ‘happening’ and said, “It must have come out from the point of view of cooperation, but the target itself was set incorrectly. I have said.
Ultimately, in the worst case, even if a candidate loses the horse, it is interpreted as Prime Minister Kim's intention that he will not remain in the post of prime minister for as long as the deputy prime minister can act as the acting deputy prime minister.
(Photo = Yonhap News)