Prime Minister's Office Prepares for Acting Authority... "Public Address if Passed"

Monitoring 'Yoon Impeachment' Vote Closely

The Prime Minister's Office is preparing for future developments ahead of the impeachment vote against President Yoon Suk-yeol, scheduled for 4 PM on the 14th. If the impeachment motion passes, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo will act as the president.

According to the Prime Minister's Office on the 14th, the Prime Minister's Secretariat and the Office for Government Policy Coordination reported to the Government Complex Seoul in the morning to prepare for the possibility of the impeachment motion being passed. However, it is reported that the Prime Minister's Office has not formed a new team or created a manual.

The Prime Minister's Office has experience assisting acting authorities during the impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun in March 2004 and President Park Geun-hye in December 2016, with Goh Kun and Hwang Kyo-ahn acting as interim leaders, respectively. Therefore, they believe they can proceed as in past precedents if President Yoon is impeached. Prime Minister Han also has experience working as the head of the Office for Government Policy Coordination during Goh Kun's acting period in 2004.

An official from the Office for Government Policy Coordination stated, "If Prime Minister Han assumes acting authority, he will work from the Government Complex Seoul, not the Yongsan Presidential Office, as per precedent."

Prime Minister Han is reportedly planning to stay at the Prime Minister's residence in Samcheong-dong, Seoul, and monitor the parliamentary vote from his office at the Government Complex Seoul in the afternoon.

Meanwhile, unlike the previous impeachment motion on the 7th, which was dismissed due to a lack of quorum, this motion is leaning towards being passed. If Prime Minister Han assumes acting authority, he plans to convene an interim cabinet meeting and deliver a public address.

Reporter Kim Dong-hyun 3code@hankyung.com