[Editorial] Lower ethical demands

President Park Geun-hye completed her Cabinet lineup on her 52nd day in office when she presented letters of appointment to the maritime and science ministers, along with the communications commission chairman and the prosecutor-general, on Wednesday. But the problem was that Chae Dong-wook, prosecutor-general, was the only one among the four that had won approval from the National Assembly.

The most controversial among the appointments was that of Yoon Jin-sook as minister of oceans and fisheries. Park had the audacity to override opposition from the ruling Saenuri Party as well as its adversary, the Democratic United Party, and go ahead with her appointment. The rival parties had been in one voice against her appointment, citing incompetence as a reason. She had failed to answer questions or given wrong answers on many occasions during her confirmation hearing.

The main opposition party lashed out at the president’s decision. It said she would have to hold herself responsible for a political deadlock that would follow. The comment from the ruling party, though less caustic, was still critical of her decision. It said the public was watching with concern if the new minister was capable of managing the ministry and if she was competent enough to help make Korea a maritime powerhouse.

Her incompetence, as had been demonstrated during her confirmation hearing, diverted public attention from an allegation about her plagiarism, which was no less serious. According to a news report, her 1990 doctorate dissertation contained portions that were copied with no due attribution given to the original.

Yoon would have been disqualified for the ministerial post if the 2006 ethical standards had been applied and the allegation of her plagiarism had proved to be true. When the accusations of plagiarism against the then deputy prime minister for education turned out to be true, he had to resign from the post.

The new minister of science, Choi Mun-kee, allegedly had an ethical problem, too. An opposition lawmaker accused him of sitting on four corporate boards of directors as an outside member in violation of the law when he was a professor of a government-run university. In 2000, an education minister resigned from his post in a similar case.

It may not be necessary to keep the minimum ethical requirements for appointments to public office too tight. But did the president really need those allegedly tainted with plagiarism and lawbreaking for the ministerial posts?