[Conditions for a Successful Presidency in 2022] Short Interview with the Author: ① "Abolish the Blue House Government (Kang Won-taek)"

YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5beFQCoBLBU

In anticipation of the 20th presidential election scheduled for March 9, 2022, the East Asia Institute (EAI) conducted the project <Conditions for a Successful Presidency in 2022>, targeting presidential candidates, their campaign teams, politicians, the media, and influencers. Following a working paper series, a book was published. The nine researchers summarize the conditions for success in the roles of head of the executive branch, politics of harmony and coexistence, and balanced national development and communication as 'decentralization, integration, and coexistence.' We are releasing short interviews with the authors alongside the web publication of the working paper series, which aims to present the conditions for the next president's success by analyzing the failures of past presidents.

Chapter 1, "Abolish the Blue House Government" – Kang Won-taek (Seoul National University)

Read the Working Paper

■ Author: Kang Won-taek_ Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Seoul National University. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). He has served as President of the Korean Political Science Association and President of the Korean Association of Party Studies. His main research areas include Korean politics, legislatures, elections, and political parties. His major publications include "Critical Moments in Korean Politics" (2019), "Writing Social Science" (2019), "Korean Politics" (2019), "Democracy Made by Citizens" (2018, co-authored), "An Evaluation of 30 Years of Democratization in South Korea" (2017, co-authored), and "Presidential System, Cabinet System, and Semi-Presidential System" (2016).

Video Transcript

I have participated in the series on the conditions for a successful presidency every election cycle. I wonder if I should be pleased to participate again this time, or if there is a problem. Every presidential election, the public truly hopes to see a successful president, but the reality is often not the case. Therefore, it is with such regret and frustration that I have participated in this project again. I was particularly interested in the relationship between the president and the Blue House.

While all presidents receive assistance from the Blue House Secretariat, the reliance seemed particularly strong in the previous administration, leading to many problems. It even led to the expression 'Blue House government.' However, if the president could effectively manage state affairs through such a system, there would be no issue. Fundamentally, a Blue House-centered administration is bound to have limitations. Above all, as it is a secretarial organization, the system inevitably revolves around the president.

There is also an inherent tendency to try to cater to the president's thoughts and preferences. Therefore, for policies to be implemented, a wider range of people must be consulted, and sometimes opinions that differ from or even oppose the president's views must be conveyed for successful state management. In this regard, a Blue House government is inevitably a very closed form of state administration. On the other hand, President Moon Jae-in also spoke of 'dialogue with the people,' but it was not kept. The reason for the emergence of the 'dialogue with the people' administration was precisely that the president was confined. Being confined to the Blue House means that the people the president can meet are very limited, and they tend to be people with similar backgrounds.

Consequently, it becomes difficult to effectively hear detailed accounts of how the world is functioning. Therefore, to become a successful president, there are various resources available to the president. Even within the Blue House Secretariat, I believe the most crucial resource is the executive branch. There are capable and experienced bureaucrats with access to significant information and resources. Enabling them to work effectively and diligently is a crucial condition for a successful presidency.

In the past, the Blue House made all the decisions, and the executive branch was merely responsible for implementation. Consequently, the role of ministers was inevitably diminished. In the previous administration, there were even peculiar instances where, apart from the presidential chief of staff, ministers rarely convened for cabinet meetings to discuss state affairs. This is problematic. Therefore, for a president to be successful, the three pillars—the executive branch, the Blue House, and the ruling party—must be in balance and function properly.

The ruling party has its role as the governing party. Above all, the public are the consumers of policy. Therefore, the ruling party can play a role in conveying the voices of the public into the policy-making process. This allows problems to be raised immediately. Thus, a president can only become successful by effectively and equitably utilizing the many resources at their disposal, rather than relying excessively on any single department. Becoming a successful president is important for the president themselves, but I believe it is even more crucial for all the citizens who elected that president. Therefore, I hope to see the continuous emergence of successful presidents, to the extent that such series on the conditions for successful presidencies are no longer needed.

I hope that you will read this book and share your thoughts on these matters with us.