President Lee stresses sense of duty for civil servants

In line with his focus on communication, President Lee Jae Myung delivered a lecture today to soon-to-be civil servants, sharing his views on the mindset they should bring to public service.

Our Presidential Office correspondent Song Yoo-jin has more.

Ever since taking office, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has emphasized that every hour spent by a public official is equivalent to 52 million hours for every person in the country.

That sense of responsibility was the main message in a lecture the President delivered to some 3-hundred trainee civil servants on Monday at the National Human Resources Development Institute in Jincheon, Chungcheongbuk-do Province.

He described public service as work that could "determine the country's fate."

"In the hands of public officials rest the lives of so many people. Especially for all of you, starting out as mid-level managers in the Korean civil service, as deputy directors, an enormous amount of authority is being entrusted to you."

The President also pointed out what he called the biggest problem in Korea's bureaucracy: a culture where well-intentioned decisions are still punished if they fail, which he says makes civil servants passive.

"When you're in public service, every choice you make, there are countless possibilities.

But if you're judged after the fact, if people say, 'You should have known this was the better decision,' that's like asking them to be god-like creatures. But we're not gods. We're human beings doing our best."

After the lecture, President Lee took questions from the audience, offering advice based on his experience as Seongnam City mayor and Gyeonggi-do Province governor.

"In policy making, there is no decision that will please absolutely everyone. We've been given the mandate from the people to mediate conflicts of interest. So with that, we should do our best to minimize misunderstandings, explain our decisions, and adjust where we can. And when all else fails, we must exercise our authority firmly."

This was the first time in 20 years that a sitting president lectured soon-to-be deputy directors, the entry-level grade for those who pass the national civil service exam.

Afterward, President Lee visited the site of the 2023 underpass flooding in Osong in the city of Cheongju for a safety inspection, reflecting his view that public officials must always prioritize people's safety.

Tuesday marks exactly two years since the disaster, which killed 14 people.

Song Yoo-jin, Arirang News.