President Lee Jae-myung said on the 13th that he could not agree with criticism that it is inappropriate for the heads of investigative and prosecutorial agencies to attend Cabinet meetings.
Lee made the remarks at a Cabinet meeting he presided over at the Blue House, saying that "investigative agencies are also carrying out work entrusted to them by the people for the sake of the country." He noted that Article 5 of the Government Organization Act defines central administrative agencies, which include ministries, offices and administrations. He added that Article 11 states that "the president, as head of the government, directs and supervises the heads of all central administrative agencies in accordance with laws and regulations," while Article 12 grants the prime minister the authority to "direct and supervise the heads of ministries and central administrative agencies under the president's orders."
"State administration naturally falls under the jurisdiction of the president and the prime minister," Lee said. "We do not intervene in the handling of individual cases, but it is very important to share the general direction and policies of state affairs together." He stressed that "ministers can even be directed," adding, "We have no intention of doing anything like that, but it is necessary to share the direction of state affairs and offer opinions."
"It does not seem right to exclude them from the group that shares the direction of state affairs altogether," he said. "There may be differing views, but under the Government Organization Act, this is a matter of course under the Constitution."
Since the Lee Jae-myung administration took office, the attendance of the heads of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office and the Korean National Police Agency at Cabinet meetings has become customary, prompting some to raise concerns about the political neutrality of investigative agencies and the independence of their investigations.