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| Han Duck-soo, left, and Kwon Young-se / Korea Times photo |
By Kang Seung-woo
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol has begun the selection process for his first prime minister, amid speculation that candidates versed in the economy are emerging as front-runners due to Yoon's focus on stabilizing the economy.
"Considering the time required for the Assembly confirmation process, the appointment of the prime minister is likely to be made by early April," Yoon's spokesperson Kim Eun-hye said during a press briefing, Monday.
"We are also in search of perfect fits for the deputy prime minister for economic affairs, the chairman of the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the senior presidential secretary for economic affairs to get them working together in concerted efforts as 'one economic team.'"
Currently, former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is the most likely candidate for Yoon's first prime minister.
The 72-year-old career bureaucrat served as the deputy prime minister for economic affairs as well as prime minister under the 2003-08 Roh Moo-hyun administration, and was ambassador to the United States under the subsequent 2008-13 Lee Myung-bak government. Coming from Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, he also worked for the 1998-2003 Kim Dae-jung administration as senior secretary for economic affairs.
Park Yong-maan, a former chairman of Doosan Group who also chaired the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, has also been mentioned in the list of candidates that includes former FSC Chairman Yim Jong-yong, former Knowledge Economy Minister Choi Joong-kyung, former Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun and former Information and Communication Minister Chin Dae-je.
Amid growing conjecture that economists and business experts will virtually take on the position of the prime minister following the press briefing, the spokesperson additionally explained that her remarks had been made to the effect that the appointment of the prime minister should be in line with selecting the presidential chief of staff and the deputy prime minister for economic affairs.
Yoon plans to exclude politicians as much as possible from his Cabinet, but given that the prime minister will administer state affairs together with him, it is said that he is considering filling the post with a politician.
In the candidate pool from political circles, Rep. Kwon Young-se, the vice chairman of Yoon's transition committee, is emerging as a favored candidate.
The 63-year-old four-term lawmaker, who also served as ambassador to China under the 2013-17 Park Geun-hye administration, took the helm of Yoon's campaign in January amid a massive internal conflict and earned recognition for bringing stability and discipline to the team. In addition, he was two years ahead of Yoon when they studied law at Seoul National University.
As well, Ahn Cheol-soo, the chairman of the transition team, has also been under discussion for the prime minister's post, since he dropped out of the presidential race to endorse Yoon.
Despite reports that Ahn may be focused on the PPP leadership, he is still seen as a strong candidate. PPP Chairman Lee Jun-seok, who has been on bad terms with Ahn, said during a TV interview, Sunday, that Ahn was cut out to be the prime minister.
Along with Kwon and Ahn, People Power Party floor leader Kim Gi-hyeon is also being mentioned for the post.
Chief of Staff Chang Je-won plans to recommend up to three candidates to Yoon after receiving their profiles from the president-elect's human resources team.
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