Acting First Deputy Mayor Jeong Sang-hoon and Second Deputy Mayor Kim Seong-bo handed in their resignations Tuesday; a large-scale promotion round is expected by the end of the month
The Seoul Metropolitan Government has accepted resignation letters from both of its top deputy mayors, sources said.
The city received resignations from six senior Grade-1 officials on June 5 — including the heads of the economic, welfare, transportation, housing and disaster safety bureaus, as well as the Arisu Headquarters chief. On Tuesday, acting First Deputy Mayor Jeong Sang-hoon and Second Deputy Mayor Kim Seong-bo also submitted their resignations.
The moves are expected to pave the way for a sweeping personnel reshuffle by the end of this month, with a significant number of promotions anticipated.
The shake-up follows Mayor Oh Se-hoon's victory in the June 3 local elections, which made him the first Seoul mayor in history to win a fifth term. The moves are seen as part of his effort to renew the city's organizational culture ahead of the launch of the ninth directly elected city administration.
It is common practice in South Korean local governments for senior officials to submit collective resignations before a sitting chief executive begins a new term or ahead of an organizational restructuring.
Analysts say the officials stepped forward particularly to ease the burden on Mayor Oh as he works to establish a new governance framework and reorganize the city administration for the next four years.
Some of the civil servants who submitted resignations Tuesday may move on to head agencies under the Seoul Metropolitan Government, serve as executives at public institutions, or take up research professor positions at the University of Seoul.
seouldream01@heraldcorp.com
