Exclusive: President Lee moves to appoint special inspector after prolonged vacancy

President Lee Jae-myung has instructed his aides to move forward with the appointment of a special inspector tasked with overseeing the conduct of presidential relatives and senior officials, according to reports on Jul. 2. The role, established under former President Park Geun-hye in 2014, has remained vacant for more than eight years following the resignation of its first and only officeholder, Lee Seok-su, in 2016. Neither the Moon Jae-in nor Yoon Suk-yeol administrations made a subsequent appointment.

During a recent internal meeting, Lee reportedly said, “We all must be subject to oversight,” as he directed aides to initiate the appointment process. The special inspector is authorized to investigate the president’s spouse, relatives within the fourth degree of kinship, and senior-level officials within the presidential office.

The position carries oversight responsibilities covering personnel-related misconduct, improper solicitations, bribery, embezzlement and misappropriation of public funds, as well as preferential or proxy contracts involving state-run companies or public institutions. Despite calls for the position to be filled during previous controversies involving presidential associates, successive administrations have left the post unoccupied.

Classified as a vice-ministerial-level political appointment, the special inspector is nominated through a process in which the National Assembly recommends three candidates. The president must then select one for appointment, subject to a parliamentary confirmation hearing. Without recommendations from the legislature, the president cannot act unilaterally. However, with Lee signaling his intent to move forward, the Democratic Party (DP)—which holds a parliamentary majority—is expected to respond favorably. “We will soon request recommendations from the National Assembly,” a senior presidential official said.

Appointing a special inspector was one of Lee’s key campaign pledges. During his presidential run, he promised to strengthen oversight of presidential relatives and aides by ensuring the immediate appointment of a special inspector with meaningful authority.

The position was created in 2014 through legislation led by the DP. The only appointment came in 2015, when then-President Park named Lee Seok-su, a former prosecutor turned attorney, as the inaugural special inspector. Lee stepped down in September 2016 after controversy erupted over the alleged leak of inspection findings related to Woo Byung-woo, then-senior presidential secretary for civil affairs. In 2018, prosecutors cleared Lee of any wrongdoing.

The role has remained unfilled since. Although current law mandates that a successor be appointed within 30 days of a vacancy, the rule has not been enforced. In May 2017, shortly after taking office, former President Moon requested the National Assembly submit candidate recommendations. However, due to disagreements between ruling and opposition parties over the nomination process, no names were submitted, and Moon did not make a subsequent request.

At the time, the DP, then the ruling party, prioritized the launch of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials (CIO) over the appointment of a special inspector. Party officials argued the CIO could serve a similar function. However, critics countered that the two roles serve fundamentally different purposes. While the CIO handles investigations after wrongdoing is uncovered, the special inspector is intended to provide proactive oversight of those closest to the president.

Former President Yoon also pledged to appoint a special inspector, promising to fully accept any nominee put forward by the National Assembly. However, the then-ruling People Power Party (PPP) proposed tying the appointment to nominations for the board of the North Korean Human Rights Foundation—a move the DP rejected, leading to a deadlock. In October of last year, then-PPP leader Han Dong-hoon announced plans to initiate the nomination process, but internal disagreements derailed the effort.