Pres. Park names NIS director as her new Chief of Staff

President Park Geun-hye appoints Lee Byung-kee as director of the National Intelligence Service at the Blue House, July 18, 2014. (Blue House photo pool)

Lee Byung-kee was chosen for his perceived skills as a communicator, but choice still still out of touch with public sentiment

President Park Geun-hye named National Intelligence Service (NIS) director Lee Byung-kee on Feb. 27 as her new Blue House Chief of Staff.

Lee’s appointment comes 46 days after the replacement of previous Chief of Staff Kim Ki-choon was announced at Park’s New Year’s press conference on Jan. 12.

Reactions from those involved in politics were mixed. Some saw Park’s pick as a reflection of the public mood, with Lee seen as a rational presence who values communication. Others criticized Park for once again showing her reliance on a narrow recruitment pool by picking a longtime associate who had been in his NIS director position for just seven months.

As a replacement for Lee, 68, as NIS director, Park named Lee Byung-ho, 75, a former second deputy director with the Agency for National Security Planning, the NIS’s predecessor, under the Kim Young-sam administration. Kim Sung-woo, now a special presidential aide on society and culture, was tapped as senior Blue House secretary for public relations. A newly formed team of special presidential aides on political affairs was filled with key members of the National Assembly’s pro-Park wing, prompting even members of Park’s own ruling Saenuri Party (NFP) to worry that the perceived lack of communication in the President’s leadership will only worsen if the team represents only a particular faction’s perspective rather than a diverse range of opinions.

“Lee Byung-kee is well versed in diplomatic and inter-Korean relations and possesses both political abilities and leadership,” Blue House spokesperson Min Kyung-wook said of the appointment. “We look forward to him providing smooth assistance to the President on different governance issues and opening up a path for communication between the public and the Blue House.”

Explaining Lee Byung-ho’s nomination to head the NIS, Min called him “rich in experience and expertise, having held important positions such as international bureau director and second deputy director during his 26 years at the NIS.”

With these nominations on Feb. 27, Park concluded the Cabinet and Blue House reshuffles set in motion by a scandal late last year over interference in state affairs by Chung Yoon-hoi, Park’s Chief of Staff when she was a second-term lawmaker, and prepared to begin the third year of her term.

Lee Byung-kee’s unexpected selection as Chief of Staff was seen by man as a reflection of intensifying pressure on Park to replace key administration figures - a situation that her previous selection of Lee Wan-koo as Prime Minister did little to allay. Lee Byung-kee himself said the final announcement of his appointment came on the morning of Feb. 27, just before it was made public that afternoon.

The circumstances suggest he was chosen late in the game as someone without major negative baggage on either the ruling party or opposition sides who was seen as capable of reaching out to the opposition and press, amid concerns that the previously considered candidates would only hurt public opinion further.

Lee’s selection could mark a shift from Park away from a “directed” approach toward a more bureaucratic one, with the Cabinet given more weight in directing practical business. Sources acquainted with Lee’s style said his focus was more on overall administration and coordination - a contrast with predecessor Kim Ki-choon, who was known as a micromanager who insisted on handling matters himself. Kim’s departure as Chief of Staff also means he could be heading for Park’s loyalist Cabinet alongside Lee Wan-koo, who recently announced a “three strikes, you’re out” system for ministerial evaluations, and a host of other pro-Park ministers.

Park may take advantage of Lee Byung-kee’s expertise in foreign affairs and security by assigning him a role in exploring potential changes in inter-Korean relations. The expectation is that the Blue House, which is in desperate need of third-year results, could assign economic and social service duties to the Cabinet while focusing itself on relations with Pyongyang, an area where short-term results are easier to produce. Supporting this prediction is the shift from a hawkish Chief of Staff with a background in public security prosecution to a relative “dove” who favors dialogue, coming fast on the heels of a new Unification Minister pick from the Blue House secretariat.

Park’s Chief of Staff selection also opens her up to criticisms of “robbing Peter to pay Paul,” with Lee being plucked from the position of NIS director just seven months after he took office last July pledging “reforms” to the agency. The appointment follows a familiar pattern: instead of searching far and wide for a surprising change of pace, Park once again went with someone she knows well and feels she can trust.

“The new Chief of Staff may well do a good job in practical terms, but what the public wants is a change,” said one second-term NFP lawmaker.

“It was someone the public isn’t familiar with, and it wasn’t a surprise,” the lawmaker added on condition of anonymity. “I’m a lawmaker in the greater Seoul area who lives or dies by public sentiments, so this is very frustrating for me.”

Park’s decision to continue shielding her so-called “triumvirate” of secretaries, widely seen as a symbol of the need for reforms, also raised questions about her commitment to communication. Analysts are predicting little change from the confusion of the past two years if Park continues relying on the three officials to relay messages indirectly and in writing.

By Seok Jin-hwan, Blue House correspondent

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