[Editorial] Opening state doors

Korea Herald

a day ago

President Lee's experiment with public input in appointments requires openness and integrity
With South Korea still recalibrating its democracy after months of political turbulence — capped last week by an early presidential election — President Lee Jae-myung has taken a quietly radical step: opening the gates of government appointments to the public.
Now underway and continuing through June 16, the initiative invites South Koreans to recommend candidates for major public posts — not through party pipelines or opaque vetting committees, but via the official website of the Ministry of Personnel Management, as well as email and social media. The image is striking: the cold machinery of state personnel decisions tempered, if briefly, by the warmth of popular input.
The initiative, a campaign pledge of Lee's, is unprecedented in scope. Citizens aged 14 and older may nominate candidates for positions such as ministers, vice ministers and the heads of public institutions. The presidential office has promised that official agencies will conduct a formal vetting process before appointments are finalized.
The symbolism is potent. In a country where presidential power has long been defined by tightly held appointment privileges, even a symbolic ceding of that authority signals a shift toward participatory governance. Lee has framed the effort as a 'meaningful first step' in making the people genuine participants in statecraft, marking a rhetorical and institutional departure from decades of bureaucratic centralism.
But ideals are one thing. Execution is another.
At its best, this initiative could discover overlooked talent, inject transparency into historically opaque hiring practices and act as a check against favoritism and ideological filtering. These are worthy goals in a democracy still contending with factionalism and entrenched hierarchies.
Yet none of these outcomes are guaranteed. The project's integrity hinges, first and foremost, on the rigor of its screening process. Grassroots nominations must not come at the expense of professionalism, ethical standards or national security. A visionary idea quickly becomes a cautionary tale if it results in underqualified or politically motivated appointments — however well-intentioned their nominators may be.
There is also the risk of manipulation. The same tools that democratize participation — online platforms, low entry thresholds, viral support mechanisms — are easily weaponized. Already, there are reports of coordinated efforts within Lee's own Democratic Party of Korea to nominate ideologically sympathetic figures en masse. If left unchecked, such tactics could blur the line between participatory democracy and digitized patronage.
This is not South Korea's first foray into public nominations. In 2015, a similar initiative faltered under its own symbolic weight. Appointments proceeded through the usual backchannels, and the process lacked the transparency and accountability needed to earn public trust. That earlier failure underscores the stakes today. Citizens must not only be invited to participate; they must be shown clearly how their input affected, or did not affect, final decisions.
And beyond all mechanics lies a constitutional truth: the ultimate authority over appointments rests with the president. But that authority does not function in isolation. It must be exercised with the support of aides, experts, institutional vetting and — when appropriate — public insight. Lee may open the door to civic participation, but it is his responsibility to ensure that what follows is more than symbolism: a process that is fair, rigorous and worthy of the trust it seeks to earn.
Appointments are not mere gestures. They shape institutions, public confidence and the trajectory of national policy. Lee has made a bold move by inviting the people in — but he must also ensure the system works, and that the right people walk through the door.