By Hyonhee Shin
SEOUL (Reuters) – Senior aides to impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol offered mass resignations on Wednesday, a day after his office expressed regret over Acting President Choi Sang-mok’s approval of two new judges on a court to decide Yoon’s fate.
Yoon’s chief of staff, policy chief, national security adviser and special adviser on foreign affairs and security, as well as all other senior secretaries, resigned, his office said in a statement, without elaborating.
Choi said he would not accept their resignation because the priority now is to focus on improving the economy and stabilizing state affairs, his office said.
Aides repeatedly expressed their intention to resign after Yoon’s failed attempt to declare martial law on Dec. 3, but their resignations were not accepted, said a presidential official, who declined to be identified due to political sensitivity.
The official said senior secretaries have been assisting Choi since he took over as acting president. Two other officials said the aides do not participate in day-to-day government operations, but are required to report to Choi and attend meetings when necessary.
The latest offer of aides came a day after Choi’s surprise approval to fill two vacancies on the Constitutional Court presiding over Yoon’s impeachment.
This brought the total number of judges on the nine-member court to eight. Any decision in the Yoon case will require the concurrence of at least six judges.
Yoon’s ruling People’s Power Party criticized Choi’s decision as “dogmatic” and without sufficient consultation.
Finance Minister Choi assumed the role of acting president on Friday following the impeachment of Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who had been acting president since Dec. 14 when Yoon was suspended from power.
Yoon faces investigation on charges of leading a rebellion, and the Seoul District Court on Tuesday authorized his arrest, a first for a sitting president.
