Presidential office dismisses talk of Cabinet shakeup

By Yoo Cheong-mo
SEOUL, Dec. 8 (Yonhap) -- The office of President Lee Myung-bak on Monday flatly
denied growing media speculation of an imminent shakeup of the Cabinet and
presidential secretariat, saying the president currently has no intention to
change his lineup amid worsening economic conditions.
"Reshuffles of the Cabinet and the presidential secretariat are not under
consideration for now. Groundless rumors of an imminent shakeup in the media
could inadvertently discourage government officials devoted to overcoming the
economic crisis," presidential spokesman Lee Dong-kwan said.
The spokesman's remarks came after a number of domestic newspapers recently ran
news stories to the effect that President Lee was moving to replace large numbers
of his Cabinet ministers and senior secretaries ahead of his first inaugural
anniversary early next year.
Such media speculation gained further momentum after opposition parties demanded
the dismissal of Finance Minister Kang Man-soo and other economic policy makers
for making what they claim were a series of policy blunders.
"Please don't produce speculative reports about the shakeup of the Cabinet and
presidential office anymore. Such reshuffles won't take place for quite a long
time. Now is the time to concentrate government efforts on gaining parliamentary
approval of the 2009 budget bill and overcoming the economic crisis," said the
spokesman.
He then vowed to deal sternly with any further media speculation about a
government shakeup.
ycm@yna.co.kr
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