Yoon likely to hold rare official press conference as early as next week

Politics

Published: 02 May. 2024, 15:21 Updated: 02 May. 2024, 19:44

Yoon likely to hold rare official press conference as early as next week

President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, personally introduces Chung Jin-suk, a five-term lawmaker of the People Power Party, as his new chief of staff at the Yongsan presidential office in central Seoul on April 22. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

President Yoon Suk Yeol is expected to hold an official press conference as early as next week as he marks his second year in office, presidential officials said Wednesday, in keeping with a promise to improve his communication with the public.

This would mark Yoon's first press conference in a year and nine months and comes as the president considers reorganizing his office following his conservative People Power Party's (PPP) crushing defeat in last month's general election.

Yoon's second anniversary since his inauguration falls on May 10, hence the presidential office is said to be preparing to hold the press conference around this date, possibly as early as next Wednesday or Thursday.

The last official presidential press conference was held on Aug. 17, 2022, marking Yoon's first 100 days in office.

A second-year press conference is being "prepared with the highest priority among various measures to strengthen communication with the media," said a presidential official Wednesday.

Despite his campaign pledge to become a president who better communicates with the press and public, Yoon has had limited question-and-answer opportunities with journalists after suspending his daily "doorstepping sessions" with reporters in the early days of his presidency.

In November 2022, the presidential office halted Yoon's morning doorstepping sessions, despite having become his fleeting trademark of sorts, after an MBC reporter and a presidential aide got into a heated verbal altercation. Yoon has also avoided customary presidential New Year's press conferences for two years, instead opting for interviews with the conservative Chosun Ilbo newspaper in 2023 and public broadcaster KBS earlier this year, which was prerecorded.

The exceptions were diplomatic communications, such as joint press conferences after summits with foreign leaders. Yoon also took a few questions from journalists on April 22, after holding two unexpected press encounters that day to personally announce his new chief of staff and senior secretary for political affairs.

The April 10 general election was marked by a landslide victory for the liberal Democratic Party (DP), which has endangered Yoon's prospects of pushing forward his reform policies and other agenda items unless he and the PPP find ways to compromise with rival parties.

Such efforts align with Yoon's promise during open remarks at a Cabinet meeting on April 16 to improve his communication with a "more humble and flexible attitude," accepting the public sentiment reflected through the election results.

This resulted in his first official one-on-one meeting with DP chief Lee Jae-myung on Monday since his inauguration.

Likewise, Lee Do-woon, senior presidential secretary for public relations, told cable broadcaster Channel A later Monday, "You can assume that [a press conference] will be held."

The venue is yet undecided, but the presidential office is expected to invite as many members of the presidential press corps as possible to the second-anniversary conference, including possibly foreign correspondents, which would require a larger venue than the Yongsan presidential office press briefing room.

Through this opportunity, Yoon could make an opening statement on his policy vision and direction of state affairs and then take answers from reporters afterward to increase communication channels with the press. However, he could also be confronted with tough questions, including ones about allegations against first lady Kim Keon Hee, who has stayed out of the public eye since the end of last year amid reports that she had received a luxury handbag from a pastor in 2022.

The presidential office is also considering other ways to improve communication with the media.

This could include meeting with chief editors and executives of media companies and more casual chats over "kimchi stew" with reporters.

The presidential office has also been proceeding with its reorganization plans ahead of Yoon's second anniversary, starting with the April 22 naming of Chung Jin-suk, a five-term PPP lawmaker, as the new chief of staff.

A senior secretary for civil affairs position may also be revived to manage personnel matters and exercise oversight on political trends and public sentiment, according to sources. Yoon, who advocated a slimmer presidential office during his campaign days, had previously abolished the post, arguing that it had been used to control opposition political forces in the past.

During Yoon's meeting with DP's Lee on Monday, he alluded to the resurrection of the post by noting that the Kim Dae-jung administration also initially eliminated the senior secretary for civil affairs position, only to revive it two years later.

Some possible candidates for the position reportedly include former Vice Justice Minister Kim Joo-hyun, a former prosecutor and Park Chan-ho, a former chief prosecutor of the Gwangju District Prosecutors' Office. However, both candidates conform to public criticism over Yoon's penchant for appointing former prosecutors to administration posts, as he was a former prosecutor general himself.

Other senior secretary positions under consideration include the legal affairs and public livelihood posts.

A prime minister candidate will likely emerge after the presidential office reshuffle since Prime Minister Han Duck-soo offered to resign over last month's election defeat.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]