Education minister resigns over proposal to lower school entry age

Aug 09, 2022, 08:43 am

		0
Education Minister Park Soon-ae/ Source: Yonhap

AsiaToday reporters Park Ah-ram & Lee Sun-young

Education Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Park Soon-ae offered to resign Monday, nearly a month after taking office.

“I am going to resign as education minister and deputy prime minister,” Park said in a press conference at the Korea Educational Facility Safety Institute in Seoul on 5:30 p.m.

“I am responsible for all the controversies, including the reorganization of school system, and it is all my fault,” she said.

Park’s resignation comes 34 days after being appointed by President Yoon Suk-yeol on July 5, and 10 days after announcing the controversial plan to reorganize school system which has drawn harsh backlash from teachers and parents.

Park will be the first Cabinet minister to step down since Yoon took office in May.

Considering nominees for ministerial posts, Park will be the fourth person to step down from candidacy, following vice education minister nominee Kim In-cheol and health minister nominees Chung Ho-young and Kim Seung-hee.

Park was appointed as Deputy Prime Minister of Social Affairs on May 26. She was approved by the president 39 days later, without a confirmation hearing. However, she was under pressure to step down over a plan to have kids start elementary school at age five instead of six. She has been also criticized for a plan to abolish foreign language high schools without sufficient preparations.

“The power of government comes from the people. I will overhaul state affairs so that they meet the public eye,” said President Yoon Suk-yeol on his way back to the presidential office in Yongsan, Seoul.

Yoon has reportedly made up his mind to fire Park during his vacation last week, with a series of personnel setbacks that have ruined his approval rating.

This seems in line with Yoon’s approval rating that fell to 24%, the lowest since he took office in May.

#education minister #Park Soon-ae #resign #school entry age #Yoon Suk-yeol